ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Departmental Press

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to which local newspapers his Department had a subscription between October 2008 and May 2010; on what date each such subscription started; and what the cost to the public purse was of such subscriptions.

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change has a subscription for two copies of the  Aberdeen Press and  Journal, for its Aberdeen Office. The subscription started when the Department was created in October 2008. The cost of the subscription until May 2010 was £357.60.

SCOTLAND

Broadband: Scotland

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether his Department has made an assessment of the economic value of carrying out a comprehensive mapping of Scotland's fibre infrastructure.

Michael Moore: The Digital Economy Act 2010, which came into force in June of this year, gives Ofcom a new duty to report to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) every three years on the UK's communications infrastructure. Ofcom has consulted on the scope of the first report which is due for publication in 2011. In addition, BIS is currently consulting on changes to the EU framework directive (Directive 2002/21/EC), specifically article 12(4) which allows for national authorities, including national regulatory authorities, to request information from companies to provide a detailed picture of the infrastructure in a member state.

Broadcasting: Scotland

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether his Department has undertaken an impact assessment in respect of the economic effects on the Scottish broadcasting sector of the Government's decision not to accept the recommendation by Ofcom that Scottish Television should be classified as a qualified independent producer.

Michael Moore: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport undertook an impact assessment as part of the public consultation on the potential reclassification of production companies owned by Channel 3 licence holders. The decision not to reclassify Scottish Television as an independent producer for BBC commissions was taken following a consultation undertaken by the previous Administration. The Government's approach will ensure a fair chance for small and independent production companies in Scotland.

Broadcasting: Scotland

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what consultation his Department has with  (a) Scottish Television,  (b) Scottish Enterprise,  (c) trade unions in Scotland and  (d) the broadcasting industry in Scotland prior to the Government's decision not to accept the recommendation by Ofcom that Scottish Television should be classified as a qualified independent producer.

Michael Moore: The previous Administration held a public consultation from 4 November 2009 to 2 February 2010 on the potential reclassification of production companies owned by Channel 3 licence holders. Responses were received from the following organisations:
	Bees Nees
	Caledonia TV
	Channel 4
	Comedy Unit
	Eyeline Media
	Finestripe Productions
	ITV
	IWC Media
	La Belle Allee Productions Ltd
	Lion Television
	Mac TV
	Mallinson Sadler Productions
	Matchlight Limited
	Michael Darlow
	Mike Bolland
	Ofcom
	PACT
	Scottish Screen
	Scottish Government
	Skyline Productions Ltd
	STV
	Tattiemoon
	Tern TV
	True TV and Film Ltd
	Turmeric Media
	UKTV
	Ulan Productions
	UTV
	Visible Ink Television.

Citizens Advice Scotland

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he last met representatives of Citizens Advice Scotland; and what matters were discussed at that meeting.

Michael Moore: I last met representatives from Citizens Advice Scotland on 5 July. Among the topics discussed were forthcoming business and funding issues for the organisation.

Glasgow School of Art

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he  (a) last visited and  (b) next plans to visit (i) the Glasgow School of Art and (ii) the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.

Michael Moore: In September I had a meeting with Universities Scotland, the representative body for Scotland's 20 higher education institutions. I have not yet had the opportunity to visit the Glasgow School of Art or the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.

Kenneth Calman

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he last met Sir Kenneth Calman; and what was discussed at that meeting.

Michael Moore: I spoke with Sir Kenneth Calman on 9 June 2010. We discussed the final report of the Commission on Scottish Devolution and the Government's coalition commitment to implement the Commission's recommendations. I will be meeting with Sir Kenneth again in the near future.

Political Adviser

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what criteria he set for candidates for appointment as his political adviser; what consideration he gave to advertising this post; and what the  (a) experience,  (b) salary and  (c) length of contract of such appointments are.

Michael Moore: The only appointment I have made as Secretary of State for Scotland has been to appoint a special adviser; no political adviser has been appointed. The appointment of a special adviser is a personal appointment, and, therefore, such posts are not generally advertised. Special advisers are appointed, and remunerated, in accordance with guidance issued by the Cabinet Office.

Political Appointments

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many  (a) political appointments and  (b) other personal appointments he has made since his appointment; and what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of such appointments.

Michael Moore: The only appointment I have made since my own appointment as Secretary of State for Scotland has been to appoint a special adviser. Special advisers are appointed, and remunerated, in accordance with guidance issued by the Cabinet Office.

Public Expenditure: Scotland

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on the likely effect on the West Lothian local authority area of the implementation of proposals in the comprehensive spending review.

Michael Moore: I have had many discussions with ministerial colleagues on a range of issues, including the effects of the spending review in Scotland. The spending review sets out how the Government will carry out Britain's unavoidable plan to reduce the largest deficit in peacetime history. Alongside growth, the Government have prioritised fairness, including reforming the welfare system to put it on a sustainable long-term footing, while providing sustained routes out of poverty for the poorest. Scotland and its regions will stand to benefit from these priorities.

Scotland Bill

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when his Department expects to publish the Scotland Bill.

Michael Moore: The Queen's Speech included a commitment to bring forward legislation in this first Session of Parliament to implement the recommendations of the Commission on Scottish Devolution. The Scotland Bill will be published in due course.

Universities: Visits

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he  (a) last visited and  (b) next plans to visit (i) Edinburgh Napier university, (ii) Queen Margaret university, (iii) the University of Abertay, (iv) Glasgow Caledonian university, (v) the university of the West of Scotland, (vi) Robert Gordon university, (vii) the university of Stirling, (viii) the University of Dundee, (ix) Heriot-Watt university, (x) the university of Strathclyde, (xi) the university of Aberdeen, (xii) the university of Glasgow, (xiii) the university of St Andrews, (xiv) Edinburgh university and (xv) Kilmarnock college.

Michael Moore: In recent weeks, I have visited the university of Abertay and the university of Glasgow, and I plan to visit the university of Edinburgh early in 2011. I hope to visit as many of Scotland's universities and colleges as possible in the coming months. In September I met Universities Scotland, the representative body for higher education institutions in Scotland, and I plan to meet representatives from Scotland's colleges soon.

Visits Abroad: Scotland

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he  (a) last visited and  (b) next plans to visit Malawi.

Michael Moore: I have  (a) not visited Malawi and  (b) have no current plans to visit Malawi.

West Lothian Question

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent discussions he has had with the Deputy Prime Minister on the Commission to consider the West Lothian question; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Moore: I have continuing discussions on a range of matters with the Deputy Prime Minister. The Government are committed to establishing a commission to consider the West Lothian question as set out in the 'programme for government' and, as the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Forest of Dean (Mr Harper) stated on 26 October 2010,  Official Report, column 252W:
	"we aim to announce our plans for a commission by the end of the year."
	I will discuss with ministerial colleagues as plans are developed.

WALES

Public Sector: Employment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many job losses she expects there to be in the public sector in each constituency in Wales in the next five years.

David Jones: The Office for Budget Responsibility has made employment predictions for the UK based on macro-economic data and no figures are available at sub-national level.
	The Secretary of State and I remain committed to preserving public sector jobs in Wales wherever possible while ensuring that the economy is rebalanced with a strong and vibrant private sector.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Developing Countries: Maternity Services

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the evidential basis was for his statement at the consultation meeting on his Department's business plan on reproductive, maternal and newborn health that  (a) 70,000 women a year die from unsafe abortions and  (b) where such abortions do not result in death, they can cause lifelong suffering; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Mitchell: The evidential basis for the Secretary of State's statement at the consultation meeting is the latest updated statistics published by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on unsafe abortion (WHO and HRP 2010. "Unsafe Abortion in 2008: Global and Regional Levels and Trends"). This is based in part on data from the Guttmacher Institute (Singh S et al. "Abortion Worldwide: A decade of uneven progress" published in 2009). Globally in 2008, an estimated 22 million unsafe abortions took place. Nearly all of these were in developing countries, and resulted in about 70,000 deaths of women and girls.

Developing Countries: Maternity Services

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated on the relationship between the level of access to abortion and the number of deaths of (i) mothers in pregnancy or birth and (ii) newborn children; what methodology was used in such research; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Mitchell: The Department for International Development (DFID) has not directly commissioned research on the relationship between the level of access to safe, legal abortion and the number of deaths of (i) mothers and (ii) newborn children. We use data compiled by a range of organisations, including the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Guttmacher Institute.
	However, DFID is commissioning research on meeting unmet need for family planning. The successful consortium will be announced in early 2011. The final details of the work programme will be developed during the first year of the programme.

Independent Commission for Aid Impact: Expenditure

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what role the Chief Commissioner of the Independent Commission for Aid Impact will play in  (a) assessing the effectiveness of spending in meeting project objectives and  (b) selection of projects.

Andrew Mitchell: The Chief Commissioner will lead the Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) in assessing the impact and effectiveness of UK aid spending. This will include assessments of the effectiveness of spending in meeting project objectives. The ICAI will determine which projects and programmes will be evaluated, reviewed and investigated and will consult the International Development Committee in due course.

Strategic Defence and Security Review

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which countries were assessed as being conflict-affected and fragile for the purpose of the information provided in the strategic defence and security review.

Andrew Mitchell: The Government's assessment of conflict affected and fragile countries used in the development of the strategic defence and security review draws from the all-source Countries at Risk of Instability report produced by the Cabinet Office and Departments. It is not HMG policy to make the details of the Countries at Risk of Instability report public.

Sudan: Human Rights

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the African Union on the humanitarian situation in southern Sudan.

Andrew Mitchell: I am in regular contact with the Chairman of the African Union (AU) Commission, Jean Ping, including on the AU's role in Sudan. I was unable to meet with the AU's chief mediator on Sudan, President Mbeki, on my recent visit, since he was tied up with the talks on the referenda and completion of the comprehensive peace agreement.
	However, I spoke to a range of people involved in the AU high level process, including Vice President Taha and President Kiir, UNSG Menkerios and the US ambassador. I pressed the importance of a peaceful and credible process, to minimise the risk of conflict and humanitarian problems, as well as contingency planning for any humanitarian problems. I also spoke to the Joint AU/UN Special Representative in Darfur, Ibrahim Gambari, about links between conflict and humanitarian issues in Darfur and Southern Sudan.

Sudan: Human Rights

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the UN on the humanitarian situation in southern Sudan.

Andrew Mitchell: During my recent visit to Sudan, I had extensive discussions on this issue with UN representatives, including Baroness Amos, UN Under-Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Co-ordinator; Alan Le Roy, UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations; Haile Menkerios, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sudan; Georg Charpentier the Humanitarian Co-ordinator in Sudan; and with the heads of in-country teams for the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the World Food Programme (WFP).

Sudan: Human Rights

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the EU on the humanitarian situation in southern Sudan.

Andrew Mitchell: During my recent visit to Sudan, I had discussions on the humanitarian situation in Sudan with the EU ambassador and senior representatives of the EU delegation in Sudan. We discussed work to maximise the chances of a peaceful and credible referendum, on the possible secession of Southern Sudan, in January 2011. But we also discussed preparations for any outbreaks of violence and humanitarian need. The Department for International Development (DFID) and the humanitarian aid arm of the European Commission (ECHO) work closely together in Sudan on humanitarian issues across the country.

Sudan: International Assistance

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his Department's long-term strategy is to support Southern Sudan's progress towards the millennium development goals.

Andrew Mitchell: The Department for International Development (DFID) is undertaking a review of all the UK's bilateral aid programmes including in Sudan, and its southern region. Given uncertainty about the outcome of the referendum in January, and the need to retain the ability to respond to any humanitarian crisis that might occur in the early part of 2011, we aim to have a long-term strategy in place by April 2011.

Zimbabwe: Agriculture

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations his Department has made to the Government of Zimbabwe on attacks on farmers and agricultural workers.

Henry Bellingham: I have been asked to reply.
	The farm invasions by Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU (PF)) supporters contravene the Southern African Development Community (SADC) ruling of November 2008 as well as the terms of the Global Political Agreement (GPA). Farm workers suffer equally with farm owners, often losing their accommodation as well as their livelihood.
	Our embassy in Harare monitors the situation closely and continues to make clear our concerns to the Government of Zimbabwe. The consul met with British farmers in July to further understand their concerns and see what assistance we might be able to offer. Our ambassador has raised the issue directly with the Minister for Justice and Legal Affairs. Violent invasions demonstrate a lack of respect for the rule of law. We continue to urge the police and judicial authorities in Zimbabwe to take action against them.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

British Nationals Abroad: Prisoners

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many UK nationals are in prison in  (a) Jamaica,  (b) Nigeria,  (c) the Irish Republic,  (d) Poland,  (e) Vietnam,  (f) Pakistan,  (g) Somalia,  (h) Romania,  (i) China,  (j) Lithuania,  (k) another EU Member State and  (l) another foreign country.

Jeremy Browne: On 30 September 2010, there were  (a) 39 British nationals in prison in Jamaica,  (b) two in Nigeria,  (c) 101 in the Irish Republic,  (d) 0 in Poland,  (e) two in Vietnam,  (f) 15 in Pakistan,  (g) 0 in Somalia,  (h) four in Romania,  (i) 22 in China  (j) one in Lithuania,  (k) 750 in other EU member states, and  (1) 1,657 in other foreign countries.

Iran: Human Rights

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations at UN level to establish a monitoring mechanism to report on human rights in Iran to the  (a) General Assembly and  (b) Human Rights Council.

Jeremy Browne: We remain deeply concerned by the appalling human rights situation in Iran, which has deteriorated markedly since the disputed June 2009 elections. The UK has worked closely with the EU and with international partners to raise concerns and encourage Iran to fulfil its domestic and international obligations including through tough resolutions at the UN General Assembly. We are keen that the UN should respond to and monitor all serious human rights situations and are in regular dialogue with all UN members to encourage support for this, both in the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council.

Israel: Borders

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the number of roadblocks in the west bank which have been removed by the Government of Israel; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: According to the UN's most recent annual report (published in June 2010) on "West Bank Movement and Access" the number of roadblocks in the west bank was 505. This was in comparison to 626 the previous year.
	While we welcome the improvements around the west bank, access into and within the west bank remains seriously restricted, and further easing is essential to help the Palestinian economy to grow.

Japan: Whales

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his Japanese counterpart on whaling; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Browne: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs raised whaling during his visit to Japan in July and I raised the issue during my visit to Japan in September. The Japanese Government are in no doubt of the strength of feeling in this country about this issue, and that the UK considers Japan's lethal whaling for "scientific" research wholly unnecessary.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to achieve a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Alistair Burt: holding answer 15 November 2010
	This conflict matters to British national security: we will continue to take every opportunity to promote peace, working with all parties, the US and our EU and UN partners.
	Our goal is a secure and universally recognised Israel living alongside a sovereign, viable and contiguous Palestinian state, based on the borders of 1967, with Jerusalem the future capital of both states, and a fair settlement for refugees.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs discussed these issues during his recent visit to the region and underlined the need for a renewal of Israel's moratorium on settlement construction. He is also in regular contact with Secretary Clinton and Senator Mitchell on progress. In addition we will continue our work supporting those building the institutions of a future Palestinian state, and continue to work with partners to secure greater change on the ground in Gaza.

Middle East: Peace Negotiations

Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with  (a) the US Secretary of State,  (b) the French Foreign Minister,  (c) the Egyptian Foreign Minister,  (d) the Jordanian Foreign Minister and  (e) the Quartet's middle east peace envoy on the middle east peace process.

Alistair Burt: We are in regular contact with the US and the other key partners cited on the middle east peace process (MEPP) at both ministerial and official level.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs is holding further discussions with Secretary Clinton this week. He also discussed MEPP with former French Foreign Minister Kouchner on 14 October, with Jordanian Foreign Minister Judeh on 23 October and with right hon. Tony Blair on 30 October.

Philippines: Crimes of Violence

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received of assaults on nurses in the Philippines; whether he has had recent discussions with the Government of the Philippines on that matter; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Browne: We have received only one recent report of an attack on a nurse in the Philippines: the case of the rape of a nurse on 25 September in South Upi town in Maguindanao in the southern Philippines. We have not raised the specific issue of attacks on nurses with the Philippines authorities.

Sudan: Referendums

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Sudan on eligibility to vote in the referendum planned for January 2011.

Henry Bellingham: The UK has consistently underlined to the Governments of Sudan and Southern Sudan, and the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission, the need to make urgent progress towards the Southern Sudan referendum. This has included the need for clear and fair eligibility criteria with accessible language which can be made public. We welcome the start of registration on 15 November.

Turkey: British Council

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will ensure that the level of funding allocated by the British Council to projects in Turkey is maintained.

Jeremy Browne: The British Council works independently of Her Majesty's Government. It is reviewing the implications of the spending review settlement and has not yet reached a decision on what impact the reduction in grant in aid will have on individual operations.
	The British Council is committed to maintaining its global network and Turkey will remain a priority country within that network.

PRIME MINISTER

Chequers

Tom Watson: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  on how many occasions he has met  (a) the Chairman of Associated Newspapers,  (b) the Chairman of Mirror Group Newspapers,  (c) the Chairman of Express Newspapers and  (d) the Director General of the BBC at Chequers since 12 May 2010;
	(2)  how much time he spent with Mr James Murdoch during their meeting at Chequers during the weekend of 6 and 7 November 2010; and which  (a) Ministers and  (b) civil servants were present;
	(3)  what issues he discussed with Mr James Murdoch during the latter's visit to Chequers during the weekend of 6 and 7 November 2010.

David Cameron: I refer the hon. Member to the list of official meetings by Ministers with external organisations which is published on a quarterly basis, in accordance with the ministerial code, and to the list of guests who have received official hospitality at Chequers which is published on an annual basis. Information for 2010-2011 will be published in the usual way at the end of the financial year.

Departmental Internet

Luciana Berger: To ask the Prime Minister by 
	(1)  what mechanisms he is undertaking his review of the system for e-petitions to No. 10 Downing street;
	(2)  what representations he has received from  (a) individual members of the public and  (b) organisations on his review of the system for e-petitions to No. 10 Downing street;
	(3)  whether he plans to take steps to encourage members of the public and organisations to participate in his review of the system for e-petitions to No. 10 Downing street.

David Cameron: The future of e-petitions is being reviewed by Martha Lane Fox as part of her review of all Government digital communications and engagement. The conclusions of her review will be announced shortly.

Members: Allowances

Bob Russell: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to his answer of 26 October 2010,  Official Report, column 495W, on Members: allowances, what steps he has taken to press for improvements in the service provided by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority; and if he will make a statement.

David Cameron: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 14 July 2010,  Official Report, column 946.

JUSTICE

Coroner Service: Departmental Co-ordination

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  on what occasions he has met  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials in the Department for Communities and Local Government to discuss the coroner service since his appointment;
	(2)  whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the likely effects on service provision by the coroner service of the outcomes of the comprehensive spending review.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Secretary of State for Justice has not met with the Department for Communities and Local Government to discuss the coroner service since his appointment.
	However, the Secretary of State has corresponded with the Communities Secretary on the likely effects of the outcomes of the spending review 2010 on the reform of the coroner service, and separately on the funding of certain inquests.

Data Protection

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department has taken to  (a) promote and  (b) enforce the Information Commissioner's code of conduct in relation to data protection in the last 24 months.

Jonathan Djanogly: I understand the question refers to the personal information online code of practice issued by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) in July 2010.
	Discussions took place between the MoJ and the ICO about the code of practice during the ICO's public consultation, and the Government support the code's aims. However the ICO is independent of Government in the way it discharges its statutory responsibilities in respect of the Data Protection Act, Freedom of Information Act, Environmental Information Regulations and Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations and so the promotion and enforcement of the code are matters for the ICO.

Data Protection

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Information Commissioner's code of conduct in relation to data protection.

Jonathan Djanogly: I understand the question refers to the personal information online code of practice issued by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) in July 2010.
	Discussions took place between the MoJ and the ICO about the code of practice during the ICO's public consultation, and the Government support the code's aims. However, the ICO is independent of Government in the way it discharges its statutory responsibilities in respect of the Data Protection Act, Freedom of Information Act, Environmental Information Regulations and Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations. It would therefore not be appropriate for the Government to assess the effectiveness of this code of practice.

Google

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will make an assessment of the Information Commissioner's co-ordination with his international counterparts on Google's harvesting of data as part of its Street View project; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) discharges its statutory responsibilities in respect of the Data Protection Act, Freedom of Information Act, Environmental Information Regulations and Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations independently of Government. It would not be appropriate for the Government to comment on the ICO's co-ordination with its international counterparts in individual cases.

Homicide: Death Certificates

Andrea Leadsom: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  for what reasons  (a) an inquest into a murder and  (b) the issue of a death certificate does not take place until after the completion of criminal proceedings;
	(2)  if he will review the effects on the family of a murdered person of the  (a) holding of inquests and  (b) issue of death certificates taking place only after the conclusion of any criminal proceedings.

Jonathan Djanogly: Section 16 of the Coroners Act 1988 provides that the coroner shall adjourn an inquest, in the absence of any reason to the contrary, if a criminal charge has been brought in connection with the death. Section 16 also provides that the coroner should only resume an inquest after the completion of criminal proceedings if there is sufficient cause. This is because a criminal trial will often address the same issues as an inquest, namely who the deceased was and how, when and where he or she came by their death. Bereaved families are therefore spared the distress of attending two separate judicial proceedings.
	Section 16 states further that where a coroner has adjourned an inquest, he or she shall send a certificate to the registrar of deaths. This certificate should state, so far as has been ascertained, the particulars required for registration of the death under the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953. Therefore criminal proceedings should not delay the issuing of the death certificate for registration purposes.

Legal Services Commission: Procurement

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what guidance was  (a) sought by the Legal Services Commission (LSC) from the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) and  (b) provided by the OGC to the LSC in respect of the LSC's tendering activities in 2010.

Jonathan Djanogly: Decisions made under the tender process for the award of legal aid contracts are a matter for the LSC, which is responsible for administering the legal aid scheme.
	I understand that in formulating its plans, specifications and criteria during 2008-09 for the 2010 tenders, the LSC did not seek formal guidance from OGC. Nevertheless, the tender process was designed using the guidance available from OGC and at each stage of the process detailed advice was sought from specialist lawyers and counsel regarding the nature of the service to be procured and any regulations pertaining to them to ensure that the process, criteria and supporting documentation were all compliant with relevant UK and EU procurement legislation.
	The e-tendering system used by the LSC in the tenders was itself procured from an OGC framework, and was judged to be compliant in its operations with OGC and legislative requirements.
	Finally, the staff responsible for the exercise have had extensive experience of commissioning services, including the Executive Director for Commissioning, who was Chief Executive of OGC buying solutions before joining the LSC.

Magistrates Courts

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will bring forward proposals to increase the number of cases tried before the magistrates courts and to reduce the number of minor offences heard by the Crown courts.

Crispin Blunt: It is in the interests of efficiency that cases should be dealt with in magistrates courts unless the higher sentencing powers of the Crown court are required, and the Government are considering how best to achieve that result. Much time and effort is wasted in the many cases that reach the Crown court and subsequently end in a plea of guilty; this is a particular cause for concern, and we would like to encourage defendants in these cases to plead guilty at the magistrates court stage. Equally, the Government have made it clear that they will protect defendants' rights to jury trial.

Magistrates Courts: Closures

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effects of the closures of magistrates courts on the number of minor offences that can be heard in those courts.

Jonathan Djanogly: Closures of magistrates courts are not expected to affect the number of minor offences that can be heard in those courts.
	Utilisation rates, the number of hours the time a courtroom is used, against the hours that a courtroom is available for use, averaged 64% across the magistrates courts in 2009-10. If all the proposed closures went ahead and workload transferred to surrounding courts, it is estimated that it would result in a national utilisation rate in the magistrates courts of around 80%.
	This essentially should mean that a similar amount and type of work as is heard currently will be heard at a fewer number of courts, not that the number of minor offences that can be heard will rise or fall.

Non-molestation Orders

Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 20 July 2010,  Official Report, column 235W, on non-molestation orders, when he expects his Department's programme of work accurately to record convictions of those who breach their injunctions to begin.

Crispin Blunt: Pursuant to the answer of 20 July 2010, work undertaken by the Ministry of Justice resolved a previous recording issue of offences resulting from a breach of a previously imposed court order. This enabled the inclusion of these data for the first time in the National Statistics publication "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales 2009" on 21 October 2010.
	The number of defendants found guilty of breaching a non-molestation order at all courts in England and Wales 2009 was 2,277.

Sentencing

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 4 November 2010,  Official Report, columns 888-90W, on sentencing, of what offences categories those who did not receive an immediate custodial sentence with  (a) 16 to 25,  (b) 26 to 50,  (c) 51 to 75,  (d) 76 to 100 and  (e) 101 or more previous convictions or cautions had been convicted.

Crispin Blunt: Tables 1 to 5 show figures for sentences given for indictable offences to offenders with 16 or more previous convictions or cautions, who did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by category of offence. These figures are derived from table 6.2 of "Sentencing Statistics: England and Wales 2009" which was published on 21 October 2010.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of offenders with 16 to 25 previous convictions or cautions who did not receive an immediate custodial sentence for an indictable offence by offence category, 2007-09 
			  England and Wales 
			  Number of offenders 
			   2007  2008  2009 
			 Violence against the person 2,193 2,270 2,471 
			 Sexual offences 62 85 63 
			 Burglary 1,701 1,689 1,557 
			 Robbery 52 74 72 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 12,089 13,710 14,042 
			 Fraud and forgery 675 681 719 
			 Criminal damage 699 615 594 
			 Drug offences 3,962 4,751 5,260 
			 Indictable motoring offences 125 117 120 
			 Other indictable offences 3,729 3,512 3,207 
			 Total 25,287 27,504 28,105 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of offenders with 26 to 50 previous convictions or cautions who did not receive an immediate custodial sentence for an indictable offence by offence category, 2007-09 
			  England and Wales 
			  Number of offenders 
			   2007  2008  2009 
			 Violence against the person 1,196 1,241 1,363 
			 Sexual offences 30 26 27 
			 Burglary 1,028 1,153 1,116 
			 Robbery 16 30 16 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 9,641 11,659 12,976 
			 Fraud and forgery 323 355 356 
			 Criminal damage 274 283 293 
			 Drug offences 1,887 2,402 2,833 
			 Indictable motoring offences 47 47 33 
			 Other indictable offences 1,925 1,984 1,900 
			 Total 16,367 19,180 20,913 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Number of offenders with 51 to 75 previous convictions or cautions who did not receive an immediate custodial sentence for an indictable offence by offence category, 2007-09 
			  England and Wales 
			  Number of offenders 
			   2007  2008  2009 
			 Violence against the person 151 186 251 
			 Sexual offences 3 4 3 
			 Burglary 56 61 72 
			 Robbery - 1 - 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 1,095 1,455 1,903 
			 Fraud and forgery 26 37 31 
			 Criminal damage 22 28 22 
			 Drug offences 90 131 199 
			 Indictable motoring offences 1 3 1 
			 Other indictable offences 161 185 178 
			 Total 1,605 2,091 2,660 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 4: Number of offenders with 76 to 100 previous convictions or cautions who did not receive an immediate custodial sentence for an indictable offence by offence category, 2007-09 
			  England and Wales 
			  Number of offenders 
			   2007  2008  2009 
			 Violence against the person 76 81 94 
			 Sexual offences 1 - - 
			 Burglary 2 11 12 
			 Robbery - - - 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 200 273 280 
			 Fraud and forgery 2 7 10 
			 Criminal damage 2 9 1 
			 Drug offences 5 20 19 
			 Indictable motoring offences - - - 
			 Other indictable offences 46 44 39 
			 Total 334 445 455 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 5: Number of offenders with 101 or more previous convictions or cautions who did not receive an immediate custodial sentence for an indictable offence by offence category, 2007-09 
			  England and Wales 
			  Number of offenders 
			   2007  2008  2009 
			 Violence against the person 51 85 93 
			 Sexual offences - 1 1 
			 Burglary - 5 1 
			 Robbery - - - 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 139 203 241 
			 Fraud and forgery 5 4 2 
			 Criminal damage 4 1 - 
			 Drug offences 5 6 9 
			 Indictable motoring offences - - - 
			 Other indictable offences 39 35 38 
			 Total 243 340 385 
		
	
	The figures have been drawn from the police's administrative IT system, the police national computer, which, as with any large scale recording system, is subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. The figures are provisional and subject to change as more information is recorded by the police.

Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007: Debt Collection

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 21 October 2010,  Official Report, column 880W, on the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007: debt collection, when he expects the public consultation on protection against aggressive bailiffs to commence.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice Business Plan 2011-15, published on 8 November 2010, states we will develop options for public consultation on protection against aggressive bailiffs and to encourage more flexibility in bailiff collections by the end of December 2010.
	I expect the public consultation on protection against aggressive bailiffs to commence once we have fully developed and confirmed the options.

Young Offenders Institutions: Legal Opinion

Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of young offender institutions employ a legal services officer.

Crispin Blunt: As of 15 October 2010, of the 56 establishments that hold young offenders and/or young people under 18 years of age, 40 had a legal services officer (or officers), as defined by Prison Service Order 2605 'The Role of the Legal Services (Previously Legal Aid) Officer' and 16 did not. However, of the 16 who did not, six establishments had other staff members able to assist with legal issues when required and in two others appointments were pending.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

BBC Wales: Television

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what discussions he has had with the BBC Trust on the launch of BBC One Wales in high definition.

Edward Vaizey: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, has had no discussions with the BBC Trust on the launch of BBC One Wales in high definition. This is essentially an operational issue for which the BBC is responsible.

BBC: Expenditure

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the reduction in expenditure planned by the BBC over the next four years on its ability to meet its public service obligations; and what mechanisms are in place to ensure that the services consequent on those obligations are maintained.

Edward Vaizey: The Government have made no assessment. The BBC Trust is responsible for ensuring the BBC meets its public service obligations under the charter and agreement.

Cultural Heritage: Nuclear Power Stations

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether his Department has made an assessment of the  (a) heritage value of England's built nuclear environment and  (b) merits of the listing of such sites.

John Penrose: Neither this Department nor its expert advisers, English Heritage, has completed any such overall assessment. Preliminary research work has been undertaken, however, and shared with the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) in order to inform their management of these sensitive sites. A feasibility report on Calder Hall, informed by English Heritage's work, is available on the NDA's website. Various components at Calder Hall were considered for listing in 2006, but not recommended for designation. While the Secretary of State has no plans at present to consider such sites for listing, discussions are under way between the heritage bodies of England, Scotland and Wales to consider a shared approach to this challenging aspect of Britain's technological achievement.

Departmental Lobbying

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent from the public purse on influencing public policy through  (a) employing external (i) public affairs companies, (ii) strategic consultancies and (iii) corporate communications firms,  (b) external marketing and  (c) other activities in each of the last 10 years.

John Penrose: The Department does not hold this information.
	Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of our agency and each non-departmental public body to respond to the hon. Member for Harlow directly.
	A copy of the responses will be placed in the Library of both Houses.

Digital Broadcasting: Hearing Impairment

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent representations he has received on subtitling for the deaf on digital channels; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: On 11 June 2010, Ofcom published a statement following a review of television access services (subtitling, audio description and signing) in the UK. On 14 July 2010, the Government responded to Ofcom's review. Since responding to Ofcom's review, the Secretary of State has received one letter from a member of the public and two letters from my hon. Friend the Member for Witham (Priti Patel), on behalf of a constituent, on subtitling for the deaf on digital channels.

Digital Broadcasting: Hearing Impairment

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport 
	(1)  whether his Department  (a) is taking and  (b) plans to take steps to increase the quality of subtitling for the deaf on digital television channels;
	(2)  whether his Department is taking steps to increase the availability of subtitling for the deaf on digital television channels;
	(3)  whether his Department plans to ensure that subtitling for the deaf is available on all digital channels in the UK; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  what his most recent assessment is of progress of ITV and Channel 4 towards meeting the requirement to subtitle 90% of programming by the end of 2010.

Edward Vaizey: Broadcasters already have to meet demanding targets for subtitling. The Communications Act 2003 sets minimum targets for the subtitling of programmes by licensees. For the majority of broadcasters the minimum target for subtitling is 80% to be achieved within a 10-year period, with more demanding targets set for some of the public service broadcasting services. In 2011, 70 separate channels will be required to provide subtitling; accounting for just over 90% of UK audience share in 2009. In addition, any timeshifted or simulcast HD versions of these channels are also obliged to provide subtitling.
	In determining which channels are required to provide subtitling, Ofcom considers audience share (channels achieving an average audience share of all UK households over a 12-month period of 0.05% or less are excluded from the requirements) and affordability.
	On August 2010 Ofcom published its quarterly report on the provision of access services (subtitling, signing and audio description) by broadcasters for the second quarter of 2010. Ofcom's report shows that the BBC subtitled 99.8% of its programmes, and ITV and Channel 4 both exceeded their subtitling targets of 90%. Indeed, many other broadcasters also exceeded their targets, often substantially.
	If a broadcaster fails to meet its obligations over the course of a year, Ofcom requires the deficit to be made up during the following year.
	The full report can be found at:
	http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/market-data/tv-sector-data/tv-access-services-reports/q110/
	Ofcom has provided guidance on quality of subtitling in annex 2 of the Code on Television Access Services:
	http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/broadcast/other-codes/ctas.pdf
	It is for broadcasters to take this into account when producing subtitling.
	Ofcom also requires television service providers to promote awareness of the availability of their television access services, including subtitling, to potential users of the services by making available accurate and timely information to electronic programme guide (EPG) operators listing their services, and by providing similar information on their website.

Film: Children

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport 
	(1)  how many films released on DVD received a classification from the British Board of Film Classification in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009;
	(2)  how many DVDs that were exempt from classification were released in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009.

Edward Vaizey: The Department does not hold the information requested.
	The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) published the figures for all video works released on DVD, including films which received a classification by them in the years 2007, 2008 and 2009 on their website. These figures are included in the table, for reference:
	
		
			  Video works classified by BBFC 
			   Number 
			 2007 12,229 
			 2008 11,439 
			 2009 6,946 
		
	
	A breakdown of data showing only the number of films released on DVD which received classification by the BBFC is not readily available.
	No data are recorded for films released on DVD which are exempt from classification, as this exemption renders them outside of any administrative process.

Film: Children

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will bring forward proposals to require the UK-based producers of DVDs to provide a subtitle option for all content.

Edward Vaizey: There are no plans to bring forward proposals to require the UK-based producers of DVDs to provide a subtitle option for all content.

Football

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 21 June 2010,  Official Report, column 14W, on football club governance, 
	(1)  what progress has been made on exploring better ways to involve supporters in their local clubs;
	(2)  what steps he plans to take to encourage the Football Association, Premier League and Football League to work closely together to improve the governance and regulation of the game.

Hugh Robertson: My current priority is to win the World Cup bid for 2018.
	Following the conclusion of this work, I will continue my discussions with the football authorities on the question of governance reform and supporter involvement. As outlined in the DCMS Business Plan, I plan to set out the way forward in these areas in May 2011.
	To its credit, the Premier League has already taken steps to introduce a number of new rules for this season, specifically in the areas of club ownership and financial reporting.
	We continue to monitor the effect of these changes and what further action might be necessary.

Public Expenditure

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether his Department has established processes to monitor any effects of proposed reductions in its expenditure.

John Penrose: The Department explored the implications of reductions during the spending review process and we will continue to work closely with our public bodies to manage the changes.
	On 8 November we published a new Business Plan for 2011-15, which details the priorities and major reforms to reflect the new settlement. Implementation of the Business Plan will be monitored by the DCMS Board, with updates on progress against actions published on a monthly basis.

Sports: Clubs

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what representations he has received on the effects on local communities of co-operative sports clubs.

Hugh Robertson: According to our records, this Department has received no recent representations on the effects on local communities of co-operative sports clubs.

Television: Disability Aids

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent discussions he has had with Ofcom on the code on television access services.

Edward Vaizey: On 11 June 2010, Ofcom published a statement following a review of television access services in the UK. On 14 July 2010, the Government responded to Ofocm's review.
	The Government's response, as well as more information on this review, is available on the Department for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport's website, and can be found using the link:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/publications/7237.aspx#letters
	The Secretary of State has had no recent discussions with Ofcom on the code on television access services since responding to Ofcom's review.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Allotments

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his policy is on restrictions on allotment holders selling surplus produce to local markets and shops.

Andrew Stunell: An allotment garden must, by definition, be "wholly or mainly cultivated by the occupier for the production of vegetable or fruit crops for consumption by himself or his family" (Allotments Act 1922). There is no legal restriction on allotment holders selling genuine surplus produce, nor do the Government believe that there should be.

Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether any  (a) Ministers,  (b) civil servants and  (c) politically-appointed staff in his Department have been disciplined for defamation since his appointment; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Neill: Since the Secretary of State for the Department for Communities and Local Government's appointment there have been no instances of disciplinary action for defamation against  (a) Ministers,  (b) civil servants and  (c) politically-appointed staff.

Empty Dwelling Management Orders

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many  (a) empty dwelling management orders have been made and  (b) empty properties have been returned to use through an empty dwelling management order in each local authority area since the introduction of such orders.

Andrew Stunell: A list of empty dwelling management orders authorised by the Residential Property Tribunal Service in each local authority since they were introduced is set out in the following table. We do not hold information on how many of the properties have been returned to use.
	
		
			  Authority  Number of EDMOs 
			 Bolton BC 2 
			 Carlisle DC 3 
			 LB Bromley 2 
			 LB Hammersmith and Fulham 1 
			 LB Hounslow 1 
			 LB Lewisham 7 
			 New Forest DC 1 
			 Norwich city council 7 
			 Oxford city council 1 
			 Peterborough CC 2 
			 South Gloucestershire council 1 
			 South Lakeland 1 
			 South Norfolk DC 1 
			 South Oxfordshire DC 1 
			 South Tyneside BC 1 
			 Southend on Sea 3 
			 Staffordshire Moorlands DC 1 
			 Stockton on Tees council 1 
			 Swale BC 1 
			 Wolverhampton City council 1 
			 Wychavon DC 1 
			 Total 40

Fire Services: East of England

Therese Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects the Eastern Region fire control centre to be operational.

Bob Neill: holding answer 15 November 2010
	The East of England control centre would not become operational until after mid-2011 on current timetables. It is not one of the first three control centres in which the IT system is required to be completed by the main FiReControl contractor EADS (now branded Cassidian) for that date.
	I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Tamworth (Christopher Pincher) on 15 November 2010,  Official Report, column 537W, for steps that we have taken to ensure that EADS will meet their contractual obligations.
	The FiReControl project, initiated by the last Government, is over budget and behind schedule. As with all major Government projects, it is being reviewed to ensure value for money for the taxpayer. We have been clear that EADS must deliver to time, cost and quality. The new Government are committed to ensuring value for money for the taxpayer, improving resilience and stopping the forced regionalisation of the fire service.

Institute for Fiscal Studies

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department and its predecessors spent on services provided by the Institute for Fiscal Studies in each of the last 10 years.

Bob Neill: The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) and its predecessor the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) were created following the machinery of government changes on 5 May 2006 and 29 May 2002 respectively.
	Since the inception of ODPM, the annual total of payments to the Institute for Fiscal Studies is as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2002-03 229.25 
			 2003-04 666.25 
			 2004-95 5,493.13 
			 2005-06 0 
			 2006-07 0 
			 2007-08 0 
			 2008-09 9,921.00 
			 2009-10 31,363.00 
			 2010-11 1,670.00 
		
	
	The 2010-11 spending comprises £70 on research publications, and £1,600 on a training course that took place before the general election.
	Expenditure figures prior to 2002-03 are not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Ironbridge Gorge

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress had been made on assessing the extent of land instability in the Ironbridge Gorge.

Bob Neill: My Department commissioned Advantage West Midlands to procure consultants (Wardell Armstrong) to verify the nature and scale of the land instability problems in the Ironbridge Gorge. My officials have completed the review of the consultants' report and the long-term strategy for addressing the land instability issues in Ironbridge Gorge is being considered following the outcome of the spending review published on 20 October 2010.

Local Government: Sustainable Development

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he plans to make a decision on the proposals for local sustainability strategies made by local authorities under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007 that have been shortlisted by the Local Government Association.

Bob Neill: The Department for Communities and Local Government's Business Plan states that the Government:
	"will decide on proposals already submitted under the Sustainable Communities Act, and publish related steps the Government will take to enable local authorities to achieve what they want to see happen"
	by January 2011.

Non-domestic Rates: Surcharges

Conor Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government from what budget the cost of holding a binding vote on local authority proposals to introduce a local supplement on business rates would be met; and by what means such a binding vote would be held.

Bob Neill: It will be the responsibility of the levying authority to cover the cost of running a business rate supplement ballot. It is intended that a business rate supplement vote would be held via a postal ballot. A successful outcome will be where there is a simple majority of those who have voted in favour both in terms of the number of properties liable for the business rate supplement and the rateable value they represent.

Social Rented Housing: Lewisham

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of the planned funding for decent homes announced in the comprehensive spending review will be made available to the Lewisham arm's-length management organisation.

Andrew Stunell: In the spending review we announced that we will invest over £2 billion of capital funding to help towards completing the Decent Homes programme. Of this, nearly £1.6 billion will be available over the next four years to help make local authority homes decent. We will be working with the Homes and Communities Agency to ensure that funding is allocated where it is needed. On 11 November we launched a consultation document jointly with the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) containing our proposals for managing the allocation process.

Travellers

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the progress of his Department's review of the law affecting Travellers; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Stunell: We are working on proposals to strengthen the powers that local authorities have to enforce against breaches of planning control and limiting the opportunities for retrospective planning applications in relation to any form of unauthorised development.
	The Government will bring into force section 318 of the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 which includes local authority Traveller sites in the Mobile Homes Act 1983.
	Later this month we will be introducing the Localism Bill to Parliament, which will abolish regional strategies.

Travellers

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent representations he has received on the law relating to Travellers; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Stunell: Between 18 June 2010 and 10 November 2010, we received 268 letters from members of the public, 123 items of ministerial correspondence, two petitions and two Freedom of Information requests on issues related to Travellers. The majority of these are about planning policy and about 30 relate to trespass and unauthorised encampments.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Crown Prosecution Service

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Attorney-General what plans he has for the future of each Crown Prosecution Service office.

Edward Garnier: The following table records each property on the CPS estate. Planned closures have been agreed for a number of properties and these are noted on the table. Unless noted otherwise, it is planned that the majority of other sites will be retained at least until the next lease break opportunity or lease expiry.
	
		
			  Location  Property  Break date  Lease expiry date  Plan 
			 Ashton Police Station 21 January 2015 20 January 2030 No site specific plan 
			 Aylesbury Prebendal Court No break date 3 January 2013 No site specific plan 
			 Barrow in Furness Emlyn Hughes House 1 October 2018 1 October 2023 No site specific plan 
			 Birkenhead Atlantic House 30 April 2011 30 April 2016 Office vacant, break exercised and interest will be disposed 30 April 2011 
			 Birmingham Colmore Gate No break date 23 June 2019 No site specific plan 
			 Blackpool Prudential House n/a 10 November 2015 New lease has six month rolling break. Staff have moved to Preston and break will be exercised this month bringing the lease to an end in May 2011 
			 Bolton Police Station 21 January 2015 20 January 2030 No site specific plan 
			 Bournemouth Oxford House No break date 28 September 2012 No site specific plan 
			 Bradford Windsor House No break date 30 September 2018 No site specific plan 
			 Brighton Dyke Road City Gate 18 October 2012 17 October 2017 Staff to relocate from Eastbourne 
			 Bristol Froomsgate House No break date 23 June 2012 No site specific plan 
			 Burnley Burnley Wharf No break date 25 June 2018 No site specific plan 
			 Canterbury Riding Gate House No break date 22 September 2023 No site specific plan 
			 Cardiff Capital Tower (floors 19-21) 7 December 2016 7 December 2021 No site specific plan 
			 Cardiff Capital Tower (part 13th floor) No break date 5 January 2020 No site specific plan 
			 Carlisle Stocklund House No break date 31 January 2011 Staff from Workington relocated here earlier this year. Business case for extending lease is being considered. 
			 Carmarthen Caebanc Owned Owned No site specific plan 
			 Chelmsford County House No break date 29 March 2019 No site specific plan 
			 Chester Windsor House No break date 23 June 2014 No site specific plan 
			 Chichester Citygates No break date 8 March 2013 No site specific plan 
			 Chippenham Fox Talbot House No break date 24 December 2019 No site specific plan 
			 Colwyn Bay Llys Eirias No break date 24 June 2018 No site specific plan 
			 Coventry Friars House (4th-10th Floors) No break date 24 December 2014 No site specific plan 
			 Crosby Heron House No break date 6 May 2016 No site specific plan 
			 Croydon Southern House No break date 27 September 2019 No site specific plan 
			 Cwmbran Vantage Point House 24 March 2018 24 March 2023 No site specific plan 
			 Derby St Peters House No break date 24 March 2010 Office to close in 2011 and staff to relocate to other CPS sites 
			 Droitwich Artillery House No break date 28 September 2018 No site specific plan 
			 Eastbourne St Leonards Road No break date 31 March 2011 Office to close in 2011 and staff relocate to Brighton 
			 Eastleigh Black Horse House No break date 3 November 2011 Office to close in 2011 and staff relocate to Winchester Crown court 
			 Exeter Hawkins House No break date 24 March 2015 No site specific plan 
			 Gloucester Kimbrose Way No break date 24 March 2015 No site specific plan 
			 Grimsby Heritage House No break date 31 March 2012 No site specific plan 
			 Guildford The Gateway 14 August 2018 14 August 2023 No site specific plan 
			 Harrogate The Exchange 19 June 2011 19 June 2016 No site specific plan 
			 Hull Citadel House 8 January 2014 8 January 2019 No site specific plan 
			 Huntingdon Justinian House No break date 24 December 2014 No site specific plan 
			 Ipswich St Vincent House 24 March 2013 24 March 2018 No site specific plan 
			 Lancaster Rosemary House 28 September 2015 28 September 2020 Vacant-staff have moved into Preston 
			 Leamington Spa Rossmore House No break date 29 February 2012 Staff to be relocating to Warwickshire Justice Centre December 2010 
			 Leeds Jefferson House No break date 24 March 2015 No site specific plan 
			 Leicester Princess Court No break date 21 March 2026 No site specific plan 
			 Lincoln The Regatta Suites No break date 28 May 2019 No site specific plan 
			 Liverpool Magistrates court No break date 3 April 2006 No site specific plan 
			 Liverpool Royal Liver Building 1 January 2012 31 December 2013 No site specific plan 
			 London Marlowe House No break date 25 March 2014 Site occupied by Met Police 
			 London New Kings Beam House No break date 24 December 2011 Office to close in 2011 and staff relocate to other London offices 
			 London Rose Court 28 September 2013 28 September 2018 No site specific plan 
			 London The Cooperage No break date 23 June 2014 No site specific plan 
			 Luton Sceptre House No break date 23 June 2014 No site specific plan 
			 Maidstone Priory Gate No break date 24 December 2016 No site specific plan 
			 Manchester Sunlight House No break date 5 March 2012 No site specific plan 
			 Mansfield Phoenix House 24 March 2011 22 October 2016 No site specific plan 
			 Merthyr Tydfil Cambria House No break date 24 March 2015 No site specific plan 
			 Middlesbrough Building One 31 March 2012 31 March 2022 No site specific plan 
			 Middlesbrough Building One 31 March 2017 31 March 2022 No site specific plan 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne St Ann's Quay No break date 3 June 2018 No site specific plan 
			 Newtown Powys Powys Afon House 1 April 2016 31 March 2019 No site specific plan 
			 Northampton Beaumont House No break date 1 October 2011 No site specific plan 
			 Norwich Carmelite House No break date 23 June 2018 No site specific plan 
			 Nottingham King Edward Court No break date 28-Apr-2013 No site specific plan 
			 Oldham Cromwell Court No break date 24 March 2015 No site specific plan 
			 Oxford Gemini One 14 July 2016 13 July 2021 No site specific plan 
			 Plymouth St Andrews Court 24 December 2013 24 December 2018 No site specific plan 
			 Portsmouth Crown House Owned Owned No site specific plan 
			 Preston Unicentre 24 April 2016 23 April 2021 No site specific plan 
			 Rochdale Newgate House No break date 31 March 2011 Plan to relocate to other CPS premises 
			 Sheffield Greenfield House Owned Owned No site specific plan 
			 Shrewsbury Lakeside Business Park No break date 19 April 2013 No site specific plan 
			 St Albans Queen's House No break date 30 January 2023 No site specific plan 
			 Stafford Parker Court 16 November 2016 16 November 2021 No site specific plan 
			 Stoke on Trent Etruria Valley Office Village No break date 16 May 2016 No site specific plan 
			 Swansea Princess House No break date 28 September 2011 Office to close in 2011 and staff to relocate to other local offices 
			 Victoria Artillery Row No break date 23 June 2013 Wholly sublet to commercial tenant 
			 Wakefield South Parade No break date 28 September 2015 No site specific plan 
			 Warrington Bankside Chambers 31 August 2011 (part site) 24 December 2016 No site specific plan. Break exercised on part of site. 
			 Wigan Kingscroft Court No break date 24 December 2016 Wholly sublet 
			 Wigan Police Station 21 January 2015 20 January 2030 No site specific plan 
			 Wolverhampton St Georges House No break date 17 January 2011 Office to close in 2011 and staff relocate to other local offices 
			 Workington Prosper House No break date 12 June 2014 Vacant-staff moved into Carlisle 
			 Wrexham Bromfield House 25 March 2013 24 March 2018 No site specific plan 
			 York Athena House 17 February 2015 17 February 2020 No site specific plan 
			 York United House No break date 12 December 2013 No site specific plan

Crown Prosecution Service

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Attorney-General how many cases prosecuted by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in each  (a) magistrates and  (b) Crown court in each local authority area were stopped or lost as a result of (i) discontinuance and (ii) attrition of CPS staff in each of the last three years.

Edward Garnier: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) collects data about the cases it prosecutes, but its data collection system is based on the number of defendants prosecuted rather than individual offences.
	The CPS comprises 42 areas whose boundaries are largely based on those of the police forces of England and Wales. These boundaries are not co-terminate with either local authority boundaries or with those of individual magistrates courts or Crown courts.
	The detailed data requested for individual magistrates courts and Crown courts can be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However there are data available which show: (i) the total of prosecutions discontinued by the CPS; (ii) the totals of other unsuccessful outcomes; (iii) the total of all unsuccessful outcomes; and, (iv) the totals of successful outcomes for each CPS area in the last three years for both magistrates court cases and Crown court cases. The data for prosecutions dropped by the CPS include cases that are discontinued, withdrawn or where no evidence is offered. Other unsuccessful outcomes will include all acquittals after trial. CPS data do not identify whether the reason for dropping a case was due to attrition of CPS staff. Tables containing these data have been deposited in the Library of the House.

Crown Prosecution Service: Closures

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Attorney-General which Crown Prosecution Service offices have closed in the last 12 months.

Dominic Grieve: Between 1 October 2009 and 30 October 2010 the following CPS offices closed.
	1. Solar House, Stratford, London
	2. Ludgate Hill, City of London
	3. Kings House, Harrow, London
	4. The Old Barracks, Grantham
	5. Crosstrend House, Lincoln
	6. Tolworth Tower, Surbiton
	7. Atlantic House, Birkenhead, Merseyside
	8. Prosper House, Workington
	9. Rosemary House, Lancaster
	10. Prudential House, Blackpool

Crown Prosecution Service: Personnel

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Attorney-General how many Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) staff there were in each local authority area in each year since 2005; and how many cases were referred to the CPS in each local authority area in each such year.

Edward Garnier: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is divided into 42 geographical areas across England and Wales. The number of staff in each area since 2005 is shown in table 1.
	The CPS does not keep data on the basis of local authority boundaries, but on the basis of its area structure. Data are therefore only available for the 42 geographically based CPS areas.
	The number of cases referred to the CPS includes all cases charged by the police which the CPS prosecutes, and the cases referred to the CPS by the police for a pre-charge decision. The breakdown between pre-charge decisions and cases charged by the police, in the last five years, are provided in tables 2 and 3 as follows.
	
		
			  Table 1-CPS staff 
			   2005  2006  2007  2008  2009  2010 
			 ENGLAND and WALES 7148 7500 7820 7705 7700 7550 
			 Avon and Somerset 173 191 198 183 188 177 
			 Bedfordshire 63 68 63 71 74 76 
			 Cambridgeshire 69 68 73 80 78 77 
			 Cheshire 109 105 108 115 115 112 
			 Cleveland 107 112 116 110 104 99 
			 Cumbria 78 77 82 79 80 79 
			 Derbyshire 104 111 115 122 123 119 
			 Devon and Cornwall 121 136 134 125 122 121 
			 Dorset 56 64 69 74 77 78 
			 Durham 79 76 77 84 92 93 
			 Dyfed-Powys 66 68 65 64 61 62 
			 Essex 154 151 163 172 185 191 
			 Gloucestershire 55 55 52 55 61 55 
			 Greater Manchester 464 485 511 502 474 457 
			 Gwent 83 81 85 97 86 84 
			 Hampshire and I.O.W 223 226 246 248 243 239 
			 Hertfordshire 97 116 128 114 120 120 
			 Humberside 101 118 123 122 118 119 
			 Kent 160 163 186 179 188 182 
			 Lancashire 238 249 256 242 252 264 
			 Leicestershire 117 130 130 128 119 120 
			 Lincoln 64 79 78 82 79 70 
			 London 1334 1336 1455 1394 1364 1319 
			 Merseyside 295 319 303 276 259 247 
			 Norfolk 93 100 100 99 95 90 
			 North Wales 72 80 83 82 84 83 
			 North Yorkshire 72 76 77 83 85 82 
			 Northamptonshire 66 73 74 82 81 77 
			 Northumbria 254 259 272 268 274 266 
			 Nottinghamshire 165 163 172 157 182 184 
			 South Wales 210 233 252 226 241 234 
			 South Yorkshire 180 192 192 183 195 195 
			 Staffordshire 138 139 149 156 152 144 
			 Suffolk 74 76 76 75 70 70 
			 Surrey 68 69 73 77 81 80 
			 Sussex 131 152 157 162 165 167 
			 Thames Valley 193 217 221 228 246 247 
			 Warwickshire 38 39 43 43 42 40 
			 West Mercia 110 140 144 149 147 148 
			 West Midlands 515 530 531 530 515 501 
			 West Yorkshire 309 322 330 322 317 324 
			 Wiltshire 50 56 58 65 66 58 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2-Pre-charge decisions 
			   2006  2007  2008  2009  2010( 1) 
			 ENGLAND and WALES 577,286 564,200 538,055 485,409 402,193 
			 Avon and Somerset 12,179 11,273 15,558 10,916 8,714 
			 Bedfordshire 5,985 5,733 6,147 5,615 4,441 
			 Cambridgeshire 7,446 6,194 6,563 5,746 5,652 
			 Cheshire 9,573 10,147 9,473 8,527 6,658 
			 Cleveland 6,392 6,498 6,927 6,045 5,085 
			 Cumbria 6,642 5,950 5,528 5,319 3,425 
			 Derbyshire 11,970 12,181 11,364 9,126 7,977 
			 Devon and Cornwall 8,681 11,088 10,302 9,367 7,152 
			 Dorset 7,825 6,137 5,981 4,631 3,935 
			 Durham 7,144 7,776 7,409 6,927 4,957 
			 Dyfed Powys 3,875 3,304 2,603 2,427 2,022 
			 Essex 13,990 15,847 14,028 12,336 10,707 
			 Gloucestershire 5,097 5,662 5,661 5,189 3,136 
			 Greater Manchester 35,713 33,146 28,817 27,742 26,746 
			 Gwent 6,480 6,531 5,921 5,609 4,675 
			 Hampshire and I.O.W 15,734 19,015 19,281 17,242 13,725 
			 Hertfordshire 8,061 8,053 6,098 5,460 5,291 
			 Humberside 8,486 8,144 8,568 7,980 6,760 
			 Kent 12,637 14,021 13,264 11,554 9,074 
			 Lancashire 24,680 23,174 22,292 21,248 17,659 
			 Leicestershire 10,061 9,992 8,118 8,047 6,152 
			 Lincolnshire 5,597 3,974 4,266 3,703 2,861 
			 London 84,990 83,786 86,406 72,262 64,208 
			 Merseyside 20,374 19,616 18,405 15,014 12,171 
			 Norfolk 7,729 7,383 7,381 7,305 5,876 
			 Northamptonshire 5,713 5,627 5,167 5,323 4,198 
			 Northumbria 20,158 18,490 15,797 12,891 9,860 
			 North Wales 9,114 7,894 7,806 7,762 5,977 
			 North Yorkshire 7,700 7,514 7,483 6,941 4,883 
			 Nottinghamshire 12,811 13,316 10,275 11,792 9,744 
			 South Wales 16,582 14,631 15,487 15,694 12,500 
			 South Yorkshire 14,264 13,668 13,136 11,607 8,776 
			 Staffordshire 13,382 11,340 10,383 9,020 6,266 
			 Suffolk 8,356 7,187 6,531 5,381 4,800 
			 Surrey 4,816 5,983 6,319 4,789 6,084 
			 Sussex 15,655 15,303 15,327 14,021 12,309 
			 Thames Valley 15,518 16,296 14,736 13,469 11,579 
			 Warwickshire 4,101 3,695 2,968 2,375 1,908 
			 West Mercia 12,078 12,256 10,758 9,057 6,918 
			 West Midlands 41,633 41,242 33,581 31,315 23,858 
			 West Yorkshire 23,933 20,839 21,454 23,675 20,433 
			 Wiltshire 4,131 4,294 4,486 4,960 3,041 
			 (1) January to October 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3-Police charged prosecutions 
			   2006  2007  2008  2009  2010( 1) 
			 ENGLAND and WALES 762,740 693,192 677,320 663,636 536,011 
			 Avon and Somerset 20,909 20,328 17,257 16,433 14,183 
			 Bedfordshire 7,723 6,607 6,185 5,944 4,375 
			 Cambridgeshire 10,095 7,970 7,652 7,516 6,040 
			 Cheshire 13,510 14,225 14,165 13,485 10,423 
			 Cleveland 8,846 8,784 9,478 9,533 7,763 
			 Cumbria 10,174 9,092 8,705 7,286 5,713 
			 Derbyshire 10,401 9,962 8,512 7,425 5,846 
			 Devon and Cornwall 18,753 16,544 16,274 15,599 12,629 
			 Dorset 9,450 7,510 6,687 6,551 5,005 
			 Durham 7,260 6,952 6,152 5,321 4,480 
			 Dyfed Powys 8,829 7,808 7,922 7,661 6,193 
			 Essex 18,339 17,508 18,126 18,863 14,832 
			 Gloucestershire 5,604 4,842 5,083 4,747 3,334 
			 Greater Manchester 51,020 42,073 42,195 36,121 28,471 
			 Gwent 11,097 10,077 7,384 6,834 4,984 
			 Hampshire and I.O.W 19,897 20,372 20,503 20,999 16,538 
			 Hertfordshire 14,337 12,536 12,547 13,467 10,512 
			 Humberside 10,527 10,838 11,089 10,791 8,885 
			 Kent 19,965 18,887 17,191 16,639 13,019 
			 Lancashire 25,445 23,470 22,111 23,397 17,292 
			 Leicestershire 13,211 10,692 10,624 9,962 7,907 
			 Lincolnshire 11,927 10,591 10,029 9,534 6,345 
			 London 99,150 87,736 98,058 108,937 102,861 
			 Merseyside 16,347 20,006 22,787 24,377 18,885 
			 Norfolk 10,553 10,212 9,383 8,553 7,424 
			 Northamptonshire 8,856 8,789 7,748 7,239 5,341 
			 Northumbria 30,626 30,659 25,119 23,318 19,275 
			 North Wales 11,537 9,519 8,918 9,206 7,817 
			 North Yorkshire 8,517 7,734 8,200 7,203 5,389 
			 Nottinghamshire 14,729 13,928 16,508 11,607 11,086 
			 South Wales 24,172 19,153 18,894 18,844 14,096 
			 South Yorkshire 18,695 17,724 17,991 16,880 13,819 
			 Staffordshire 16,180 14,826 13,446 10,986 9,327 
			 Suffolk 8,130 7,028 8,538 10,084 6,103 
			 Surrey 7,039 8,208 8,002 7,848 5,850 
			 Sussex 15,947 13,579 11,904 12,069 9,496 
			 Thames Valley 31,998 26,577 22,119 22,527 17,166 
			 Warwickshire 6,175 5,115 4,595 5,387 4,734 
			 West Mercia 18,580 17,332 15,463 14,363 10,793 
			 West Midlands 40,371 37,275 35,403 34,017 21,743 
			 West Yorkshire 37,552 32,437 30,947 28,595 25,749 
			 Wiltshire 10,267 7,687 7,426 7,488 4,288 
			 (1) January to October

Departmental Contracts

Ian Austin: To ask the Attorney-General what the monetary value is of contracts the Law Officers' Departments have awarded to each  (a) management consultancy and  (b) IT company since 7 May 2010.

Dominic Grieve: The information is as follows:
	 Monetary value of contracts awarded by TSOL to management consultancy companies from 7 May 2010 to 31 October 2010
	TSOL has awarded no contracts to management consultancy companies since 7 May 2010.
	
		
			  Monetary value of contracts awarded by TSOL to IT companies from 7 May 2010 to 31 October 2010 
			  Company  Value of contract (£) 
			 Specialist computer centres 10,800 
			 Insight 5,306 
			 Kelway UK Ltd 149,538 
			 Total 165,644 
		
	
	
		
			  Monetary value of contracts awarded by the SFO to management consultancy companies from 7 May 2010 to 31 October 2010 
			  Company  Value of contracts (£) 
			 Corven Consulting Ltd (1)173,792 
			 PA Consulting (2)851,044 
			 Skills for Justice 6,483 
			 Total 1,031,319 
			 (1) Includes £96,680 accrued (2) Includes £213,660 accrued 
		
	
	
		
			  Monetary value of contracts awarded by the SFO to IT companies from 7 May 2010 to 31 October 2010 
			  Company  Value of contracts (£) 
			 COA Solutions Ltd 1,345 
			 2E2 UK Ltd 2,625 
			 Sanderson Forensics Ltd 16,263 
			 Specialist Computer Centres plc 58,925 
			 Sungard Vivista 3,142,000 
			 Total 3,221,158 
		
	
	
		
			  Monetary value of contracts awarded by the NFA to management consultancy companies from 7 May 2010 to 31 October 2010 
			  Company  Value of contracts (£) 
			 Magic Beans Consultancy Ltd 400 
		
	
	
		
			  Monetary value of contracts awarded by the NFA to IT companies from 7 May 2010 to 31 October 2010 
			  Company  Value of contracts (£) 
			 BrightWave Ltd 29,493 
		
	
	The CPS, AGO and HMCPSI have not awarded any contracts to management consultancy or IT companies since 7 May 2010.

Newspaper Press: Telephone Tapping

Tom Watson: To ask the Attorney-General whether the Director of Public Prosecutions was informed that the Metropolitan Police Service held transcribed voicemail messages as part of its telephone hacking and blagging investigation; and if he will make a statement.

Dominic Grieve: In 2006 two people were prosecuted for offences of conspiracy to intercept communications and related offences. The DPP at the time, Sir Ken McDonald QC, now Lord MacDonald of River Glavern, and the reviewing lawyer are no longer in post, and no information is contained in the prosecution file on this specific issue. It is not therefore possible to ascertain whether the DPP was informed that the Metropolitan Police Service held transcribed voicemail messages as part of its investigation into telephone hacking.

Prosecutions: Convictions

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Attorney-General what proportion of prosecutions in each local authority area in each of the last 12 months resulted in a conviction.

Edward Garnier: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) collects data on prosecutions conducted by them. Other Government Departments and local authorities also conduct prosecutions, which are not captured in the data retained by the CPS. CPS data relate to defendants and not to individual offences, and are recorded on the basis of the 42 geographically separate CPS areas, not local authority areas.
	Tables showing the percentage of convictions for each CPS area for each of the last 12 months in the period 2009-10, together with the total successful and unsuccessful outcomes for each CPS area, for each month in that year, have been deposited in the Library of the House.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what timetable she has set for the merger of Animal Health and the Veterinary Laboratories Agency; and if she will make a statement.

James Paice: The Secretary of State announced on 29 June that Animal Health and the Veterinary Laboratories Agency were going to be merged. We are aiming to formally merge these bodies on 1 April 2011. The merger will bring together services, expertise and scientific capability on animal health. In resource constrained times it will improve our resilience in delivering important services, including our animal disease emergency response capability and science requirements for animal health.

Animal Products: EU Law

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the potential market for a facility to store animal products that do not comply with EU import requirements.

James Paice: The UK has no approved stores or warehouses for the storage of animal products that do not meet the EU import conditions.
	The importation into the EU of animal products could pose a risk to animal and public health unless it is properly controlled. Each consignment of animal products must be accompanied by appropriate documentation and must enter the EU through a Border Inspection Post (BIP), where checks are carried out to ensure that import conditions have been met.
	While Council Directive 97/78 (the Veterinary Checks Directive), provides that non-conforming animal products may be stored within the EU in specially approved warehouses, subject to stringent controls, provided their ultimate destination is outside the EU, the Directive also provides that member states can refuse to allow storage of such goods in their territory on the grounds that they pose an animal or public health risk.
	The UK therefore deems these products to be a risk. Regulation 47 of the Products of Animal Origin (Third Country Imports) (England) Regulations 2006 prohibits imports of non-conforming products into a warehouse in free zones, a free warehouse or a customs warehouse in England.

Beak Trimming

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the membership of the Beak Trimming Action Group will be once it has been reconvened.

James Paice: The Beak Trimming Action Group will consist of poultry industry representatives, poultry breeders, welfare groups, representatives from scientific and veterinary professions, researchers and DEFRA officials.

Beak Trimming

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 8 November 2010,  Official Report, columns 2-4WS, on beak trimming (laying hens), who will be responsible for the cost of industry study tours to European countries where beak trimming is not carried out.

James Paice: In order to progress towards a ban on beak trimming, I have asked the industry to carry out its own study tours to European countries-for example Austria, where beak trimming is not carried out-and to consider experiences from their industry colleagues. Results of these tours will be fed back to the Beak Trimming Action Group to consider when formulating an action plan that will work toward a future ban on this procedure.

Circuses: Animal Welfare

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to make an announcement on the outcome of the consultation on the use of wild animals in travelling circuses.

James Paice: An announcement will be made early in the new year.

Common Land

Alan Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many recommendations she received for the registration of new town and village greens in each of the last 10 years; how many new town and village greens were registered in each such year; and what size the town and village greens were in each case.

Richard Benyon: Commons registration authorities (county councils in two-tier local authority areas) are responsible for processing and determining applications to register land as a town or village green under section 15(1) of the Commons Act 2006.
	The figures in the following table are estimates derived from surveys of commons registration authorities in England, and scaled up accordingly. The data include registrations made under section 13(b) of the Commons Registration Act 1965 (the predecessor to section 15(1) of the 2006 Act), but do not include registrations made on a voluntary application by the owner under section 15(8) of the 2006 Act. There are no national data available for 2000-02.
	
		
			  Greens registered 
			   Number 
			 2009 (to end of September) 17 
			 2008 26 
			 2007 18 
			 2006 8 
			 2005 30 
			 2004 9 
			 2003 10 
		
	
	No data are collected centrally on the size of registered greens. However, a sample study of 25 greens registered between 2001 and 2009 found that the median size was 0.3 hectares.

Common Land

Alan Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations her Department has received on legislation relating to the registration of new town and village greens; whether she plans to review this legislation; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: A number of representations have been received recently from Members of Parliament, local authorities, and others about the registration of land as town or village greens.
	The Government are considering whether change to the greens registration system is required as part of their commitment to create a new designation to protect green areas, and as a response to the Penfold Review, which recommended making changes to the registration system to remove obstacles to development. I hope to make an announcement later this year.

Common Land

Alan Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many applications for the registration of town and village greens were rejected by commons registration authorities in each of the last 10 years.

Richard Benyon: The figures in the following table are estimates derived from surveys of commons registration authorities in England, and scaled up accordingly. The data include applications rejected under both section 15(1) of the Commons Act 2006, and section 13(b) of the Commons Registration Act 1965. There are no national data available for 2000-02.
	
		
			   Number of applications rejected 
			 2009(1) 79 
			 2008 52 
			 2007 35 
			 2006 16 
			 2005 22 
			 2004 29 
			 2003 30 
			 (1) To end of September.

Dangerous Dogs

Jane Ellison: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on her Department's consultation on dangerous dogs.

James Paice: Discussions between officials at DEFRA and the Home Office about the link between antisocial behaviour and dangerous dogs are ongoing. An announcement about the publication of the summary of responses to the consultation on dangerous dogs and a way forward will be made soon.

Departmental Information Officers

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many press officers are employed by  (a) her Department,  (b) the Environment Agency,  (c) Natural England and  (d) each other non-departmental public body sponsored by her Department; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: The information requested is set out as follows.
	
		
			  (a) DEFRA-20 press officers 
			  Desk  Number of press officers 
			 Head of News 1 
			 Food, Farming and Animal Health and Welfare 6 
			 Natural Environment, Rural Affairs, Water and Waste 6 
			 Climate, Flooding and Science 4.5 
			 Strategic Media Planning 2.5 
		
	
	
		
			  (b) The Environment Agency-26.5 press officers 
			  Region  Number of press officers 
			 Anglian 2 
			 Midlands 3 
			 Wales 2.5 
			 North East 2 
			 North West 2 
			 South West 1 
			 Southern 3 
			 Thames 4 
			 Head office 8 
		
	
	
		
			  (c) Natural England 
			   Number of press officers 
			 Natural England 5 
		
	
	
		
			  (d) Other non-departmental public bodies sponsored by DEFRA 
			   Number of press officers 
			 Marine Management Organisation 1 
			 CEFAS (1)- 
			 Forestry Commission 3 
			 British Waterways 2 
			 Gangmasters Licensing Authority 1 
			 Rural Payments Agency (1)- 
			 Food and Environment Research Agency 1 
			 (1) Equivalent of 0.5 people's jobs

Departmental Lobbying

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how much her Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent from the public purse on influencing public policy through  (a) employing external (i) public affairs companies, (ii) strategic consultancies and (iii) corporate communications firms,  (b) external marketing and  (c) other activities in each of the last 10 years;
	(2)  which of her Department's non-departmental public bodies have undertaken activities to influence public policy for which they engaged  (a) public affairs and  (b) public relations consultants in each year since 1997; and at what monetary cost in each such year.

Richard Benyon: None of my Department's agencies or non-departmental public bodies have spent public money on these activities.

Environment Agency: Watercourses

Karl McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to ensure that the Environment Agency has adequate resources to maintain all its watercourses.

Richard Benyon: The Environment Agency is responsible for maintenance of watercourses designated as "main rivers". Local authorities will continue to be funded by Formula Grant for their responsibilities for ordinary watercourses.
	Environment Agency resources to carry out routine maintenance will be protected as far as possible. They will continue to be targeted, on a risk based approach, towards the parts of the country where the consequences of flooding would be highest.

Livestock: Overseas Trade

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many live  (a) horses,  (b) asses,  (c) mules and  (d) hinnies have been (i) exported from and (ii) imported into the UK from (A) EU member states and (B) third countries in each of the last two years; and for what purposes these animals were exported and imported in each case.

James Paice: Details of the total number of live horses, asses, mules and hinnies exported from Great Britain and imported into the UK from EU member states and third countries for 2008 and 2009 are provided in the tables, as recorded in the Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES) and the Certification of Exports, Notification of Trade and Assessment of Underlying Risk (CENTAUR) databases.
	Registered horses need not be recorded in TRACES as they can move freely between EU member states accompanied by a health attestation document, which is valid for 10 days, and a valid horse passport.
	It is not possible to split these figures into individual categories of horses, asses, mules and hinnies or to ascertain for what purposes these animals were exported and imported as these data are not recorded.
	
		
			  Total number of live horses, asses, mules and hinnies exported from Great Britain 2008-09 
			   2008  2009 
			 EU 6,914 6,965 
			 Non-EU 3,233 2,673 
			 Total 10,147 9,638 
			  Source:  Certification of Exports, Notification of Trade and Assessment of Underlying Risk (CENTAUR) database 
		
	
	
		
			  Total number of live horses, asses, mules and hinnies imported into the UK 2008-09 
			   2008  2009 
			 EU 3,858 3,147 
			 Non-EU 1,529 1,341 
			 Total 5,387 4,488 
			  Source:  European Commission's Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES) database

Ofwat

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what mechanism her Department has to assess the impartiality of Ofwat; and what the outcome was of the most recent assessment made by Ministers;
	(2)  if she will assess the merits of merging Ofwat with  (a) Ofgem and  (b) the Consumer Council for Water;
	(3)  what recent assessment she has made of the performance of Ofwat against its objectives.

Richard Benyon: On 26 August the Secretary of State announced the launch of a review of Ofwat, with an accompanying call for evidence that closed on 29 October.
	The review aims to ensure Ofwat is fit for future challenges. It is examining how the regulator works, whether it offers good value for money and if it is delivering what Government and customers expect. The review is also looking at the effectiveness of the Consumer Council for Water and its relationship with Ofwat and the water companies. The terms of reference for the Ofwat review can be found on DEFRA's website.
	The review team is working closely, where appropriate, with the Department for Energy and Climate Change's review of Ofgem, which is also under way.
	The Ofwat review is being run in parallel with the Water White Paper which is due for publication in June next year. The review will feed into the White Paper's development.

Redundancy

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many redundancies she expects there to be in each pay grade in her Department in each of the next five years; and what estimate she has made of the cost of such redundancies to her Department in each year.

Richard Benyon: DEFRA will make the reduction in headcount through natural wastage and voluntary departures wherever possible, with compulsory redundancies as a last resort. Until we know the numbers who take up voluntary departure, it will not be possible to estimate the number of compulsory redundancies. However, overall, we expect DEFRA and its arm's-length bodies to have between 5,000 and 8,000 fewer jobs by 2015.

Water Supply: Industry

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will assess the merits of measures to encourage water-intensive industries to locate in areas less prone to water shortages.

Richard Benyon: Business decisions on the best place to locate will take into account many factors, including the availability of adequate water supplies.
	A water-intensive business will usually want to obtain a licence to abstract water from the environment as this is cheaper than paying for water supplied by water companies. Business can make use of the published information on water availability via the Environment Agency's catchment abstraction management strategies. These identify the availability of water resources for new abstractions, and areas where water is unlikely to be available.
	In addition, there are mechanisms in place to encourage efficient use of water by businesses, including water-intensive industries. The water technology list identifies products, across a range of technologies, that are at the leading edge of efficient water consumption. These technologies benefit from enhanced capital allowances. Investments in such products give long-term financial benefits by reducing the amount of water that needs to be abstracted from the environment or obtained from the public water supply.
	The Water White Paper, which we intend to publish in June next year, will address the question of the management of water resources, both now and in the future.

Wild Horses

Pat Glass: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will bring forward proposals to reduce the incidence of wild horses damaging private property.

James Paice: I do not intend to bring forward proposals to reduce the incidence of "wild horses" damaging private property. Depending upon the circumstances and nature of the damage caused, the owners of those free roaming horses that cause damage may be liable under the Animals Act 1971. If any horses causing damage are not owned, they may be controlled in a legal and humane manner.

Wildlife: Internet

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made on reducing the level of wildlife trade on the internet since the last meeting of the Conference of Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

Richard Benyon: Further to the response I gave the hon. Member on 12 July 2010,  Official Report, columns 457-58W, DEFRA is in the final stages of commissioning a project to establish a baseline of the scope and volume of wildlife trade via the internet. This project will also develop a search methodology to monitor illegal activity which will be shared with enforcement agencies worldwide. Following receipt of the results of that project, DEFRA will consider how best to tackle the use of the internet for illegal wildlife sales, including the possible issuance of a code of conduct for internet operators.

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Commonwealth Women's Affairs Ministerial Conference

Priti Patel: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities how much the Government Equalities Office spent on attendance at the Commonwealth Women's Affairs Ministerial conference in June 2010; and how many civil servants attended.

Lynne Featherstone: The UK sent one senior civil servant to this conference, the head of Gender Equality Policy, who is based in the Government Equalities Office.
	The cost including travel and subsistence of attending the meeting was £3,195.

Departmental Travel

Priti Patel: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities how much the Government Equalities Office spent on  (a) foreign travel,  (b) hotels,  (c) taxi fares and  (d) rail travel in each year since it was established.

Lynne Featherstone: The Government Equalities Office was established on 12 October 2007. The total expenditure on all travel and subsistence is detailed in the following table. A breakdown of the expenditure into the categories requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Travel and subsistence  Total expenditure (£) 
			 2007-08(1) 18,880 
			 2008-09 79,891 
			 2009-10 129,542 
			 2010-11(2) 43,874 
			 (1) From 12 October 2010 (2) As at 31 October 2010

Equal Pay

Priti Patel: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what steps she is taking to reduce the gender pay gap.

Lynne Featherstone: The Government are committed to tackling the barriers that women face in the workplace and are taking a range of measures including making pay secrecy clauses unenforceable, extending the right to request flexible working to all employees, consulting on a new system of parental leave, and promoting gender equality on company boards including asking Lord Davies to fully investigate the issue.

Government Equalities Office: Finance

Priti Patel: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what the administrative budget for the Government Equalities Office will be in each of the next five years.

Lynne Featherstone: The recent spending review settlement, covering the next four years, allocated an administration budget to the Government Equalities Office as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2011-12 45.9 
			 2012-13 41.9 
			 2013-14 34.1 
			 2014-15 25.2 
		
	
	The budget for 2015-16 will be fixed by the next spending review.
	The budget for the Government Equalities Office covers the costs of its non-departmental public body, the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

TRANSPORT

A69

John Stevenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to upgrade the remaining part of the A69 between Carlisle and Newcastle upon Tyne to a dual carriageway.

Michael Penning: holding answer 28 October 2010
	 The Secretary of State for Transport announced on 26 October 2010,  Official Report, columns 177-79W, the Department's plans for funding road improvement schemes for the spending review period, to the end of 2014-15.
	The Department for Transport will also take forward work on a number of schemes already under consideration for the next spending review period. At present, the Department is not developing proposals for future schemes on this section of the A69.

Alloy Wheels

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what data his Department collects on road accidents where defective alloy wheels were a contributing factor to the cause of that accident; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Penning: The Department for Transport does not collect any data on whether defective alloy wheels were a contributing factor to the cause of a road accident.
	The Department holds several datasets on road accidents. In addition to the police road casualty data (STATS19) there are several in depth studies-the On the Spot study (OTS), the Co-operative Crash Injury Study (CCIS) and the Heavy Vehicle Crash Injury Study (HVCIS). None of these datasets holds any information on whether defective alloy wheels contributed to an accident.

Bus Services

Ben Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to assist competing bus companies to reach co-operative agreements to provide regular services on  (a) Wherstead road in Ipswich constituency and  (b) other routes with an identified need.

Norman Baker: The regulatory framework for buses permits co-operative agreements between bus operators as long as certain conditions are met. We have seen good results in places where local authorities and operators work effectively in partnership to improve bus services-such as in Brighton, York and Cambridge.
	While it is the role of Government to set this framework and encourage more of this type of activity for the benefit of bus passengers in Ipswich and elsewhere it is up to local authorities and communities to make it happen. This might be a local authority making a statutory quality bus partnership scheme, as in Nottingham, or instead endorsing a qualifying agreement between two operators, as in Oxford.
	Ultimately, however, it is for commercial operators to decide whether to run services such as the route 66 bus in Ipswich, and at what frequency. If a service is not considered commercially viable, a local authority can decide it wishes to tender for and support a replacement service, or discuss with the local community alternative forms of transport provision.

Bus Services: Finance

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated on the likely effects on (i) bus fares and (ii) service levels of the reduction in bus service operators grant proposed in the spending review.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport has not commissioned or evaluated any specific research on the likely effects on bus fares and service levels of the reduction in bus service operators grant proposed in the spending review.
	With regard to the potential impacts of a reduction in bus service operators grant on fares and bus services I refer the hon. Member to the answer of 15 November 2010,  Official Report, column 570W.

Bus Services: Information Services

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he plans to amend the Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulations 2000 to require on-board audio and visual passenger information systems on buses.

Norman Baker: Research has been commissioned to assess the costs and benefits of installing audio visual systems on buses. The research project has brought together a cross-section of stakeholders, including Guide Dogs, Royal National Institute of Blind People and Royal National Institute for Deaf People. We will take account of the results of this work in considering any changes to the Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulations 2000 (PSVAR). The project is due to report shortly.

Cycling

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of changes in the level of cycling in each cycling city and town in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Baker: In 2005 the Department for Transport funded six cycling towns and in 2008 this funding was extended to include a further 11 cycling towns and one city until March 2011. Their remit was to increase significantly their cycling levels.
	Preliminary evaluation of the first six cycling demonstration towns (CDTs) provided evidence of early changes in the levels of cycling and physical activity in CDTs across a range of indicators, including a 1 percentage point increase in the estimated proportion of people cycling for 30 minutes at least three times a week, and a 27% increase in levels of cycling as measured by automatic cycle counts. Taken together, these findings (published by Cycling England in 2009) strongly suggest that cycling levels were observably increasing in the CDTs three years after the initiative began, with some evidence indicating that similar increases were not occurring in comparable areas.
	Monitoring of cycling levels in the CDTs is ongoing until at least 2011, in order to capture data on the longer-term trends in these towns.
	Independent evaluation and monitoring of the 12 new CCTs (cycling city and towns) is scheduled to run until 2012, with final results (including the results of a large-scale pre-and post-intervention household survey) available in 2012-13. Analysis of the monitoring data will not be conducted until a suitable time series is available, to enable intervention effects to be distinguished from seasonal and other natural fluctuations in the data.

Dartford-Thurrock Crossing: Tolls

Jackie Doyle-Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to bring forward proposals to increase charges at the Dartford-Thurrock crossing; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Penning: The Department for Transport intends to begin the necessary consultation on proposals for the new charging regime at the Dartford crossing around the end of 2010.
	Increasing the charges as proposed allows future investment in improvements at the crossing, including the implementation of free-flow charging technology, and funding of proposals for a new, additional lower Thames crossing in the longer term.

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many civil servants in his Department have used the flexible benefits project to carry out cost comparison of products to date.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport's "Your Reward" portal enables staff to view and purchase a range of products offered with retailer discounts. Since the scheme came into operation in November 2009, 88,151 viewings have been recorded to date. There is no information about whether the purpose was to carry out cost comparisons or to view and purchase products.

Departmental Pay

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what allowances and payments in addition to salary were available to officials in his Department and its non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; and what the monetary value was of payments and allowances of each type in each such year.

Norman Baker: Within the Department for Transport, its seven executive agencies and its non-departmental public bodies there are a number of different allowances and payments available to employees who meet the relevant criteria.
	However, I regret that a breakdown of these allowances and payments, or their monetary values, can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Policy

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what departmental policy reviews his Department has undertaken since 6 May 2010; on what date each such review  (a) was announced and  (b) is expected to publish its findings; what estimate he has made of the cost of each such review; who has been appointed to lead each such review; to what remuneration each review leader is entitled; how many (i) full-time equivalent civil servants and (ii) seconded staff are working on each such review; from which organisations such staff have been seconded; and how much on average such seconded staff will be paid for their work on the review.

Norman Baker: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 6 July 2010,  Official Report, column 140W.

Departmental Redundancy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff of  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies have been offered enhanced early retirement packages in each of the last three years.

Norman Baker: The number of staff offered enhanced early retirement packages in  (a) the Department for Transport and  (b) its agencies in each of the last three years is set out in the following tables:
	
		
			  (a) Department for Transport 
			   Number 
			 2008 7 
			 2009 1 
			 2010 114 
		
	
	
		
			  (b) Agencies 
			   2008  2009  2010 
			 Government Car and Despatch Agency 1 1 10 
			 Driving Standards Agency 11 4 2 
			 Driver Vehicle and Licensing Agency 33 49 0 
			 Highways Agency 24 2 6 
			 Maritime and Coastguard Agency 29 4 3 
			 Vehicle Certification Agency 0 0 0 
			 Vehicle and Operator Service Agency 7 99 0 
			 Total for agencies 105 159 21

Departmental Work Experience

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many interns his Department has engaged in the last 12 months; and how many were  (a) unpaid,  (b) remunerated with expenses only and  (c) paid a salary.

Norman Baker: In the last 12 months the Department for Transport has engaged 16 interns. They were all paid a salary above the minimum wage while on their internship.

Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost to the public purse was of running the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee in each of the last three years.

Norman Baker: The total cost of the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee, including staff costs, research costs, members' remuneration and expenses was as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2007-08 294,368 
			 2008-09 375,119 
			 2009-10 486,795

Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the potential saving to the public purse as a result of the abolition of the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee.

Norman Baker: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 2 November 2010,  Official Report, column 703W.

Institute for Fiscal Studies

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has spent on services provided by the Institute for Fiscal Studies in each year since its creation.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport was formed in May 2002 and information is provided from that date or the date an agency was formed, if later.
	The central Department has spent the following on services provided by the Institute for Fiscal Studies:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2003-04 1,275 
			 2004-05 2,743 
			 2006-07 200 
			 2009-10 575 
		
	
	The central Department has no spend on services provided by the Institute for Fiscal Studies in financial years other than those listed above.
	None of the seven executive agencies of the Department has any spend on services provided by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

M18: Speed Limits

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reasons a 50 mph temporary speed limit was in force on the M18 motorway on 1 November 2010; what guidance he provides to the Highways Agency on the imposition of temporary speed limits when work is not being carried out; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Penning: Work to replace the central reserve safety barrier is taking place in stages on the M18 between junctions 2 and to the north of junction 4. This is the first in a series of four schemes being undertaken between September 2010 and the end of March 2011.
	In order to undertake the work safely and with the minimum of disruption to the road user the hard shoulder is being used to maintain the full complement of running lanes throughout the day. In order to do this a temporary 50mph speed restriction is required. This restriction remains in place on each stage until all the work has been completed and the hard shoulder reinstated.
	On 1 November works to replace the central reserve barrier had been completed. The hard shoulder, however, was coned off because works to reinstate the verge safety barriers and inspection chambers were taking place. Works were also being undertaken in the northbound verge to repair drains and install new gullies. Additionally, to the north of junction 3 works were taking place to install both a temporary closed circuit television system in the north and southbound verges as well as speed camera cabling in the southbound verge, for the next stage of barrier works.
	On the evening of 1 November night time works to reinstate road markings, which involved a lane closure, were suspended to allow a wide load to pass safely through the works area.
	National advice on setting temporary speed limits is given in Traffic Signs Manual Chapter 8 which is developed by the Highways Agency on behalf of Department for Transport. This identifies appropriate speed limits based on the relative risk to road users. This risk is normally the same whether road workers are present or not. The Highways Agency produced additional advice in July 2007 (Chief Highways Engineer Memo 203/07) on how to apply temporary speed limits at road works using the risk based approach in Chapter 8.

Mental Health

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of recommendations relevant to his Department's policy responsibilities contained in the Foresight report on Mental Capacity and Well-Being by the Government Office for Science; if he will ensure that his Department takes steps to promote well-being; if he will ensure that his Department's policy development process takes account of psychological research into subjective well-being; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Baker: holding answer 8 November 2010
	The Department for Transport will consider the recommendations of the Foresight report on Mental Health Capacity and Well-Being, and what this means for the organisation.
	Our vision is for a transport system that is an engine for economic growth but one that is also greener and safer and improves quality of life in our communities. Our obligations under the Equality Act 2010 require us to consider the needs of eight vulnerable groups (age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation).
	The Department for Transport is committed to using the best available evidence when developing policy. In considering the mental health and well-being of our staff, we acknowledge and support the need for the public sector to lead by example. We welcome the availability of centrally provided resources and practical tools for managers and staff on managing mental health and reasonable adjustments.
	The Department for transport recognises the benefits of investing in employee health and well-being as a means to reduce both short and long-term sick absence levels, prevent ill health in the workplace, and promote healthier lifestyles.
	Work is already taking place across the Department and its seven agencies to proactively respond to local needs by promoting health and well-being. Examples of initiatives already in place include:
	Well-being strategies
	Health and well-being programmes and targeted training on stress awareness and mental health in the workplace
	Physical health screening packages which may help to reduce the risk of severe ill health in the longer term, and early diagnosis of potential health problems
	Access to dental and medical health insurance
	Learning and development support for managers and staff, including access to Workplace Option provision which provides confidential employee help and advice
	Development of a common approach to attendance management across the Department and its agencies, which includes the management of sick absence.

Motor Vehicles: Testing

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  whether he has made an assessment of the evidence compiled for his Department's 2008 MOT scheme review since his appointment; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what plans he has for the future of the MOT scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Penning: Although I am aware of the 2008 evidence, I intend to review the MOT test scheme using the latest information available. However, the Department for Transport has no specific proposals at this stage and no preconceptions about the outcome. The aim of the review will be to strike the right balance between vehicle safety and the burden imposed on motorists by MOT test requirements.
	I expect to make an announcement about the timing and scope of the review in due course and there will be an opportunity for anyone with an interest to contribute to the debate.

Parking: Disability

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will bring forward legislative proposals for the regulation and enforcement of the use of on-street and off-street disabled parking bays in England and Wales.

Norman Baker: Local authorities already have powers to enforce on-street disabled person's parking bays in England and Wales. Under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 they may designate by order an on-street parking place reserved for a disabled badge holder. If a disabled person's parking bay has been designated, it would be an offence for non-disabled people to use the space. These bays can be enforced with penalty charge notices or fixed penalty notices. In addition, if prosecuted, an offender faces a fine of up to £1,000. If the local authority chooses not to designate a bay, it remains 'advisory' and cannot be enforced.
	The Blue Badge (Disabled Parking) scheme only applies on-street. Enforcement of off-street disabled persons' parking bays is a matter for the individual owner or operator concerned. In the case of local authority off-street car parks, traffic regulation orders made under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 are used to enforce the bays. In private off-street car parks, the charges and conditions of use are essentially a contractual matter between the owner and the motorist.
	The Government have no plans to introduce further regulation.

Railways: Construction

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his plans are for the future of High Speed Rail 2; whether his Department's public consultation will assess  (a) the route and  (b) assistance for those whose properties are negatively affected; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Hammond: holding answer 15 November 2010
	The coalition Government support a truly national high speed rail network. The Government favour an initial line from London to the west midlands, followed thereafter by lines from the west midlands to Leeds and Manchester. The forthcoming consultation will cover the Government's strategy for high speed rail-including the proposed Y-shaped network-and the route for the initial line.
	The Government have already consulted on and introduced the Exceptional Hardship Scheme to assist severely affected property owners who have an urgent need to sell their property. In respect of London to the west midlands I intend to consult on and introduce further arrangements to help people whose property would not be covered by the statutory blight regime, but may nevertheless suffer a significant diminution in value as a result of proximity of any new line. I also recognise that appropriate assistance will be needed when potential routes for the Leeds and Manchester sections are announced, and I will put arrangements for such assistance in place at that point.

Railways: Timetables

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance his Department issues to train operating companies on their legal obligations in respect of the provision of timetable information to the public; and what plans he has to review those obligations to take account of technological developments.

Theresa Villiers: holding answer 15 November 2010
	The obligation on train operators to provide timetable information to the public is contractual rather than statutory and is contained in train operating companies' franchise agreements with the Department for Transport.
	Nothing within their franchise agreements prevents train operators from implementing technological developments to disseminate and publicise their timetables more widely and I would encourage them to do so.

Redundancy

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how much funding to meet staff redundancy costs was identified in his Department's settlement letter in respect of the comprehensive spending review;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of redundancies arising from the spending reductions proposed in the comprehensive spending review in respect of  (a) his Department,  (b) its non-departmental public bodies and  (c) other public bodies which are dependent on his Department for funding;
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the costs to his Department of staff redundancy in each of the next four years.

Philip Hammond: All pressures on Departments' budgets were taken into account as part of the spending review and settlements were allocated accordingly. The full costs of redundancies will be met from within the Department for Transport's spending review resource DEL settlement.
	Determining optimal workforce reforms in order to live within the Department for Transport's spending review resource DEL settlement will be an ongoing process. Detailed decisions regarding the number of redundancies that may be required have yet to be finalised.

Roads: Accidents

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will review the application of legislation relating to cycle road deaths.

Michael Penning: There is a large amount of legislation in the Traffic Acts which could be used in prosecution proceedings. Additionally the rules in the Highway Code can also be used in court proceedings.
	The investigation of road traffic collisions and the enforcement of road traffic law is an operational matter for individual chief officers of police. The police take very seriously all the issues arising from road traffic collisions, especially those where a life has been lost. The National Policing Improvement Agency has issued, on behalf of the Association of Chief Police Officers, a Road Death Investigation Manual to assist efficient and professional investigations.

Roads: Wales

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department has plans for a link road between the M40 and the Heads of the Valleys road.

Michael Penning: I understand the hon. Member's question relates to whether there are any plans for a link road between the M4 and the Heads of the Valleys road.
	Road improvement schemes in Wales are a matter for the devolved Administration.

Speed Limits: Cameras

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the  (a) accuracy and  (b) effectiveness of the ASSET new generation speed cameras; whether he has plans to introduce such cameras on roads; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Penning: Assessment of all enforcement equipment is subject to Home Office (HO) type approval, which may be granted after rigorous testing by the Home Office Scientific Development Branch (HOSDB). HO has confirmed that no application has been received by HOSDB for type approval for the ASSET enforcement camera.
	The coalition has made clear that it is not for central Government to dictate how local authorities address their priorities and issues. Should this equipment gain type approval in the future, it will be for local authorities and police forces to decide if this equipment is appropriate for their needs.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Asbestos

John Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Health and Safety Executive Hidden Killer campaign in raising awareness among construction workers about the risk of being exposed to asbestos.

Chris Grayling: Asbestos is Britain's biggest industrial killer. It is estimated there are around 4,000 asbestos-related deaths each year:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/causdis/asbestos.htm
	The audience for the campaign were maintenance workers. This group is currently at highest risk from asbestos-related disease and includes those such as plumbers, joiners, electricians, plasterers and general trades people who regularly disturb the fabric of buildings where asbestos is found, without realising it is there, and who may be working on construction sites.
	A north-west pilot in March 2008 was assessed through independent pre- and post-campaign tracking carried out by Continental Research. This demonstrated a post-campaign awareness of 81% (from 33% before the campaign), among the target group of plumbers, electricians and general trades people.
	The effectiveness of the first national campaign, which ran between October and November 2008, was also assessed pre- and post-campaign. This demonstrated an 80% awareness of the campaign (from 40% before the campaign) among the target group of plumbers, joiners, electricians and general trades people; with more than half saying they were learning something new about the risk associated with asbestos. Ongoing monitoring of HSE's website saw a 600% increase in visits to the pages relating to asbestos.
	Assessment of the most recent phase of a national campaign (which in ran November and December 2009) showed an overall awareness post campaign of 85% by trades people, rising to 90% among electricians. In addition, 76% of the audience said they had taken, or planned to take, more safety precautions when working with asbestos.

Departmental Contracts

Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he plans to announce the awarding of the contract to operate the giro cheque scheme.

Steve Webb: We will make an announcement on the outcome of the exercise to replace cheque payments once a decision has been made.

Departmental Reviews

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what departmental policy reviews his Department has undertaken since 6 May 2010; on what date each such review  (a) was announced and  (b) is expected to publish its findings; what estimate he has made of the cost of each such review; who has been appointed to lead each such review; to what remuneration each review leader is entitled; how many (i) full-time equivalent civil servants and (ii) seconded staff are working on each such review; from which organisations such staff have been seconded; and how much on average such seconded staff will be paid for their work on the review.

Chris Grayling: The following information details the major reviews announced by this Department since 6 May. The Department, however, is a large customer facing delivery organisation with over 100,000 staff spread across a wide range of geographical locations. It is not possible, other than at disproportionate cost, to identify all the reviews which the Department may have undertaken into any aspect of its very wide range of policy responsibilities in this time frame.
	(i) an independent review of how best to support the implementation of automatic enrolment into workplace pensions was launched on 24 June and reported by the planned deadline of 30 September. The outcomes of the review were set out in "Making Auto-Enrolment Work-A review for the Department for Work and Pensions" (Cm 7954) published on 27 October. This independent review was led by Paul Johnson of Frontier Economics, supported by David Yeandle of the Engineering Employers' Federation and Adrian Boulding of Legal and General. Frontier Economics are being recompensed for Paul Johnson's contribution to the review. The other members of the review team were entitled to claim expenses. The review was supported by a core team of three civil servants and drew upon wider policy, analytical and other expertise within the Department. No staff were seconded from outside Whitehall to work on the review. The cost of these staff were met from the Department's core budget with total additional costs, including the publication of the review team's report and seminars with key stakeholders, estimated at around £95,000;
	(ii) an independent review of the work capability assessment was announced on 29 June and is being led by Professor Malcolm Harrington along with a Scrutiny Group chaired by Professor David Haslam, and with three other members: Paul Farmer, Olivia Carlton and Neil Lennox. Professor Harrington's work is being supported by five civil servants. There are no secondees from outside Whitehall. All are being paid, with the exception of Neil Lennox who is carrying out the work on a pro bono basis, and all are entitled to claim expenses. The estimated cost of this review is £125,000 and it is anticipated that it will report by the end of 2010;
	(iii) a review of state pension age. A Call for Evidence on when the state pension age should increase to 66 was published on 24 June and the conclusions of the review were contained in "A Sustainable State Pension: when the State Pension age will increase to 66" (Cm 7956) published on 3 November. The cost of the review is being met from the Department's core budget. The review is being led by a core team of six staff, who also have responsibilities for other state pension policy work within the Department. They draw upon wider analytical and other expertise from within the Department. No staff have been seconded from outside Whitehall to work on the review.

Disability Living Allowance: Care Homes

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to provide assistance for mobility services for disabled people who are in full-time residential care homes.

Maria Miller: Local authorities contracts with care homes will cover services to meet a resident's assessed needs. These will cover activities of daily living which may include providing access to doctors, dentists and local services such as libraries and banks. Local authorities should also take into account the resident's emotional and social needs as part of the assessment.

Funeral Payments

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many funeral payment grants have been made in  (a) Scotland,  (b) England,  (c) Wales and  (d) Northern Ireland over the last three years.

Steve Webb: Information regarding funeral payment awards for Northern Ireland is a matter for my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
	The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of funeral payment awards by country and financial year 
			   Scotland  England  Wales 
			 2007-08 5,990 31,260 2,280 
			 2008-09 5,770 32,460 2,290 
			 2009-10 5,560 31,220 2,240 
			  Notes: 1. The information provided is Management Information. Our preference is to answer all parliamentary questions using Official/National Statistics but in this case we only have Management Information available. It is not quality assured to the same extent as Official/National statistics and there are some issues with the data, for example, numbers given do not include claims which were processed clerically and had not been entered on to the Social Fund Computer System by the end of the relevant financial year. 2. The number of awards includes those made after re-consideration or appeal. 3. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: Department for Work and Pensions Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System

Funeral Payments

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many applications for funeral payment grants have been refused in  (a) Scotland,  (b) England,  (c) Wales and  (d) Northern Ireland over the last three years; and how many such refusals were appealed against.

Steve Webb: Information regarding funeral payment awards for Northern Ireland is a matter for my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. Information regarding funeral payment appeals is a matter for my right hon. Friend, the Justice Secretary.
	The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of funeral payment initial refusals by country and financial year 
			   Scotland  England  Wales 
			 2007-08 2,970 22,850 1,730 
			 2008-09 2,980 26,700 1,980 
			 2009-10 3,050 27,530 2,000 
			  Notes: 1. The information provided is Management Information. Our preference is to answer all parliamentary questions using Official/National Statistics but in this case we only have Management Information available. It is not quality assured to the same extent as Official/National statistics and there are some issues with the data, for example, numbers given do not include claims which were processed clerically and had not been entered on to the Social Fund Computer System by the end of the relevant financial year. 2. The numbers are for initial refusals only and do not include the impact of re-considerations or appeals. 3. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: Department for Work and Pensions Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System.

Funeral Payments

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average amount awarded to individuals receiving the funeral payment grant was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Steve Webb: The funeral payment average award for Great Britain for April to October 2010 was £1,209.
	 Notes:
	1. The information provided is Management Information. Our preference is to answer all parliamentary questions using Official/National Statistics but in this case we only have Management Information available. It is not quality assured to the same extent as Official/National statistics and there are some issues with the data, for example, numbers given do not include claims which were processed clerically and had not been entered on to the Social Fund Computer System by the end of October 2010.
	2. The average award includes awards made after re-consideration or appeal.
	3. The amount has been rounded to the nearest £1.
	 Source:
	Department for Work and Pensions Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System.

Funeral Payments

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many funeral payment grants have subsequently been recovered from the estate of the deceased by his Department in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the monetary value of such sums recovered was.

Steve Webb: The number of funeral payment awards on which some recovery from the estate of the deceased was made in Great Britain from April to October 2010 was 240 and the monetary value of the sums recovered was £120,000.
	 Notes:
	1. The information provided is Management Information. Our preference is to answer all parliamentary questions using Official/National Statistics but in this case we only have Management Information available. It is not quality assured to the same extent as Official/National statistics and there are some issues with the data, for example, figures given do not include recoveries which had not been entered on to the Social Fund Computer System by the end of October 2010.
	2. The figures are for funeral payment awards recovered in full or in part.
	3. The number of funeral payment awards on which some recovery was made has been rounded to the nearest 10 and the monetary value of the sums recovered to the nearest £10,000.
	 Source:
	Department for Work and Pensions Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System.

Housing Benefit

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he has made a recent estimate of the number of housing benefit claimants in  (a) England,  (b) Birmingham and  (c) Birmingham, Ladywood constituency who are in paid employment.

Steve Webb: The information is not available at the level of parliamentary constituency.
	The most recent available estimates of non-passported housing benefit recipients in work are given in the following table for England and Birmingham:
	
		
			  Housing benefit recipients by employment status, England and Birmingham local authority, July 2010 
			  Number 
			   Non-passported in employment  Non-passported not in employment  All passported  All housing benefit recipients 
			 England 612,290 712,120 2,743,510 4,070,960 
			 Birmingham 13,780 16,380 80,540 110,840 
			  Notes:  1. Estimates of passported housing benefit recipients undertaking part-time work are not available.  2. People claiming housing benefit not in receipt of a passported benefit are recorded as being in employment if their local authority has recorded employment income from either the main claimant, or partner of claimant (if applicable), in calculating the housing benefit award.  3. The data refer to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple.  4. Passported status does not include recipients with unknown passported status.  5. Housing benefit figures exclude any extended payment cases. An extended payment is a payment that may be received for a further four weeks when they start working full time, work more hours or earn more money.  6. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces quarterly aggregate clerical returns. The data are available monthly from November 2008 and July 2010 is the latest available.  7. Figures are at 10 July 2010.  8. The figures have been rounded to the nearest 10.  9. Totals may not sum due to rounding.   Source:  Single Housing Benefit Extract.

Housing Benefit

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he has made a recent estimate of the number of households likely to be affected by the implementation of the housing benefit proposals in the comprehensive spending review in  (a) Wansbeck constituency,  (b) Northumberland and  (c) the UK.

Steve Webb: We will publish a document on the impacts of the proposed changes to the shared room rate in due course. This will include information at the local authority level.

Housing Benefit

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the merits of direct payment of housing benefit to private landlords.

Steve Webb: We are conducting a review of the first two years' operation of the local housing allowance to monitor its impact at a national level. The review aims to cover a range of issues that are likely to be of interest to landlords, including direct payment to tenants and the operation of the safeguards for tenants who are unable or unlikely to manage their rental payments. An in-depth focus group study of landlords concerning their attitudes to, and experiences of, the local housing allowance scheme will be included. The review is due to report in the later in the year.

Housing Benefit: Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people resident in Brighton, Kemptown constituency are in receipt of housing benefit; what the equivalent figure was in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: The information is not available.
	At present geographic breakdowns are only available for local authorities and regions. However, an exercise is being undertaken to add other geographical areas to the data: this will include parliamentary constituencies housing benefit caseload and average weekly amounts at local authority area level are published on the Department's website at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/hbctb.asp

Housing Benefit: East Sussex

Amber Rudd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in  (a) East Sussex and  (b) Hastings and Rye constituency were in receipt of housing benefit of more than £400 a week in the latest period for which figures are available.

Steve Webb: At July 2010, for housing benefit claims in the private rented sector, our records show that there are no households in the area covered by East Sussex county council receiving over £400 per week.
	 Source:
	Single Housing Benefit Extract for July 2010.

Housing Benefit: Rents

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what modelling his Department has undertaken in respect of the likely effects on the housing benefit budget of proposed increases in social rents.

Steve Webb: The Department for Communities and Local Government have undertaken the work on affordable rents and will be publishing more information on this measure shortly. Estimates of impacts are not yet included in the forecasts made by the Department for Work and Pensions.

Institute for Fiscal Studies: Public Expenditure

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on services provided by the Institute for Fiscal Studies in the last 24 months.

Chris Grayling: During the 24-month period between 1 October 2008 and 30 September 2010, the Department for Work and Pensions spent a total of £409,307 on services provided by The Institute of Fiscal Studies,
	Of the £35,235 spent since May 1 2010, £29,990 was for analysis of the Wealth and Assets Survey and was committed to prior to the general election, £5,125 was paid to the IFS to validate the annual poverty statistics (this is a long standing commitment which uses the vast amount of expertise the IFS has in analysing these datasets) and £120 was for miscellaneous costs.

Jobcentres: Compensation

Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many compensation payments were made for errors by job centres in  (a) Norwich,  (b) England and  (c) each of the smallest geographical areas for which figures are available in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the monetary value of such payments was in each case.

Chris Grayling: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is the responsibility of the chief executive, Darra Singh. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Darra Singh, dated November 2010:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many compensation payments were made for errors by job centres in (a) Norwich, (b) England and (c) each of the smallest geographical areas for which figures are available in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the monetary value of such payments was in each case. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Compensation payments are made through our Special Payments scheme. There are six categories that Special Payments fall under, they are; loss of statutory entitlement, compensation for delay, actual financial loss, gross inconvenience, gross embarrassment and severe distress. An explanation of these categories is provided in Annex 1.
	The Special Payments scheme is administered at a regional level, although certain Special Payments can be awarded locally. Special Payments made regionally and locally for Norwich are shown in Annex 1. Special Payments made regionally are shown for each region in Annex 2, which includes the overall figure for England. Locally awarded Special Payment data for each region and for England as a whole could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	The information has been placed in the Library.
	I hope this information is helpful.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the proportion of people claiming jobseeker's allowance who do not have access to a car.

Nick Hurd: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated November 2010:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the proportion of people claiming jobseeker's allowance who do not have access to a car. (23320).
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles the number of claimants of Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) from the Jobcentre Plus administrative system. This system does not hold information on the number of claimants of Jobseeker's Allowance who do not have access to a car.
	The Annual Population Survey (APS) collects information on the number of people who report obtaining JSA who have problems with transport which would stop them from taking a job and their reasons. In the 12 month period January 2009 to December 2009 the proportion of people who reported claiming JSA that had transport problems because they did not have personal transport (Car, motorcycle etc) was 5%.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk

Jobseeker's Allowance

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what account his proposed restriction on the payment of jobseekers' allowance will take of the number of job vacancies at local level.

Chris Grayling: Our White Paper, 'Universal Credit: welfare that works' sets out our plans for fundamental welfare reform. We shall introduce a 'claimant commitment' to clearly set out what is expected of an individual. This approach will be introduced in existing benefits and Universal Credit.
	In placing reasonable requirements on claimants, Jobcentre Plus advisers will take into account local labour market conditions and sanctions will only follow where a claimant has failed to meet those reasonable requirements.
	There are around 450,000 unfilled vacancies in the economy at any one time, but this snapshot hides huge dynamism. In the last three months over one million new vacancies have been reported to Jobcentre Plus alone, which is over 10,000 every working day.
	With new jobs coming up all the time, most people can leave unemployment quickly. Over 50% of new JSA claimants leave within three months and around three quarters leave within six months.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of jobseeker's allowance claimants who have received benefit sanctions have also received hardship payments in the last 12 months.

Chris Grayling: The Department does not hold reliable data on the number of JSA claimants who have been sanctioned and also claimed hardship payments. Therefore the information requested is not available.

Private Rented Housing

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the level of  (a) median private rented sector rents and  (b) local reference rents in 2020.

Steve Webb: The Department is currently considering the detailed policy design of the 2013 housing benefit measures announced in the June 2010 Budget in preparation for introduction of the Welfare Reform Bill early in 2011. As part of this policy design, the Department will consider how to treat pre-local housing allowance cases in future. However, there is no intention at all that local reference rents will be used in the assessment of housing benefit by 2020, and the Department will therefore not carry out a comparison with median private rented sector rents for that time period.

Private Rented Housing

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the proportion of private rented sector housing that will be available to housing benefit recipients in 2020.

Steve Webb: The Department is currently considering the detailed policy design of the 2013 housing benefit measures announced in the June 2010 Budget in preparation for introduction of the Welfare Reform Bill early in 2011. This will include provision to update local housing allowance rates according to the Consumer Price Index. This legislation will include provision for future governments to assess, and if necessary adjust, the level of rates.

Social Rented Housing

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of individuals in households in which at least one member works for at least 16 hours per week who will  (a) have their income reduced and  (b) fall below the equivalised poverty line of 60% of median household income as a result of his proposals for the rent to be charged to new tenants by social landlords; and what the average amount is by which the income of affected households will be reduced as a result of that measure.

Steve Webb: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the 4 November 2010,  Official Report, column 942W.

State Retirement Pensions

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will take steps to maintain the level of pension payments made to people who currently receive payments of over £140 per week after the implementation of his Department's proposed £140 per week limit on such payments.

Steve Webb: The Government are currently considering a number of options for simplifying the state pension system but final decisions have not yet been made. Proposals would only affect pensioners who reach state pension age on or after any changes are introduced. Current state pension entitlement will not be affected by this reform.

Vacancies

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what criteria are used to determine which companies can advertise through Jobcentre Plus; and whether payment is made by private companies when listing job vacancies through Jobcentre Plus.

Chris Grayling: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Darra Singh. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Darra Singh:
	The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has asked me to reply to your question asking what criteria are used to determine which companies can advertise through Jobcentre Plus; and whether payment is made by private companies when listing job vacancies through Jobcentre Plus. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Jobcentre Plus provides a free public employment service to assist people seeking employment and employers seeking employees. As part of this, we advertise all vacancies, providing they comply with civil and criminal law with the exception of some vacancies in the adult entertainment industry.
	In terms of your specific question, no criteria are used to determine companies that may use our services, but we always require the following information before advertising any vacancies:
	A full postal address;
	A landline telephone number;
	Contact name, position with the company and direct telephone number;
	The type of business they are involved in;
	The number of employees they have at the individual site; and
	A verbal/written assurance that the job meets minimum wage requirements.
	Over and above this we have a robust complaints process and fully investigate all complaints from employees and jobseekers and in a small number of cases Jobcentre Plus will refuse to advertise vacancies from companies where these complaints are upheld.
	Our vacancies services are free of charge. The Employment and Training Act 1973 places a statutory duty on the Secretary of State to provide services to help employers seeking employees and expressly prevents charging.

Vacancies

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department has made a recent estimate of the profit made by employment agencies in respect of the advertisement of vacancies through Jobcentre Plus on behalf of privately owned companies.

Chris Grayling: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Darra Singh. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Darra Singh:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking whether a recent estimate has been made by the Department of Work and Pensions of the profit made by employment agencies advertising vacancies through Jobcentre Plus on behalf of private companies.
	We have never attempted to make estimates of profits made by employment agencies from their work with Jobcentre Plus. To do so would not be of particular value to us and would be unlikely to be accurate unless we made requests to individual agencies for information about profits derived from particular activities. And seeking such information might undermine working relationships that are currently of real benefit to many of our customers.
	We recommend to customers that they register with appropriate agencies and search for vacancies on the Internet.
	I hope this information is helpful.

Welfare State: Reform

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he plans to take to ensure that ill and disabled people are not adversely affected by the implementation of his proposed welfare reforms.

Maria Miller: The coalition Government are determined to reform the benefit system to make it simpler, fairer, more affordable and better able to tackle poverty and welfare dependency. To achieve this we will introduce an integrated working age universal credit.
	Universal credit will ensure that all amounts of work will be more financially rewarding than inactivity and the improved incomes that flow from it will have beneficial effects for people's health and well-being. Detailed plans are set out in the White Paper 'Universal Credit: welfare that works', published on 11 November. We are also publishing an impact assessment of the changes, including an equality impact assessment. Further detail on the impacts of this and other measures will be provided with the Welfare Reform Bill.
	In addition we continually review the best way to support disabled people to enter and remain in employment. We want to break down barriers that make it more difficult for disabled people to find work, access goods and services or participate fully in community life; and we want the benefit system to provide robust and credible support to those who face the greatest barriers and cost.

Winter Fuel Payments

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of winter fuel payments in  (a) 2010-11 and  (b) 2011-12; and what estimate he has made of the proportion of that cost attributable to those (i) under the age of 65, (ii) between 65 and 70, (iii) between 70 and 75 and (iv) over the age of 75.

Steve Webb: Winter fuel payment expenditure for 2010-11 and 2011-12 is estimated to be £2.7 billion and £2.1 billion respectively.
	The proportion of expenditure estimated to be in each of the age categories supplied is:
	
		
			   2010-11  2011-12 
			 Under 65 0.22 0.21 
			 65-69 0.18 0.20 
			 70-74 0.15 0.16 
			 75 and over 0.44 0.44 
			  Notes: 1. Expenditure figures are rounded to the nearest £100 million and proportions are rounded to the nearest 0.01. 2. Winter fuel payment rates for 2010-11 will be £400 for households with someone aged 80 and over and £250 for households with someone who has reached women's state pension age. This includes a temporary increase of £100 and £50 respectively. Rates for 2011-12 have been assumed to be £300 and £200 respectively. 3. Tables containing benefit expenditure by benefit, local authority and parliamentary constituency can be found at the following URL: http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd4/index.php?page=expenditure  Source: DWP June 2010 Budget forecasts

HOME DEPARTMENT

Animal Experiments: Primates

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 4 November 2010, Official Report, column 876W, if she will introduce a requirement to record whether primates imported into the UK for research are F1 or F2+ generation.

Lynne Featherstone: Our current requirements on records for non-human primates imported into the United Kingdom for scientific research are under review and I expect to receive advice and recommendations in due course. I will write advising of any change in current policy once a decision has been made.

Animal Welfare: Public Expenditure

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the effects of the outcomes of the comprehensive spending review on  (a) her Department's funding of the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research and  (b) the official scrutiny of laboratories licensed to use animals for research purposes.

Lynne Featherstone: I am not yet in a position to assess the effects of the outcomes of the comprehensive spending review on Home Office funding of the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research and the official scrutiny of laboratories licensed to use animals for research purposes.
	My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary will make decisions on the delivery of budgets as part of the departmental business plan. No decisions have yet been taken over staffing.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Section 4 payment cards are in use by people in  (a) Scotland,  (b) England,  (c) Wales and  (d) Northern Ireland.

Damian Green: There are currently 358 Azure payment cards in use in Scotland, 3,452 in England, 300 in Wales and 27 in Northern Ireland.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which retailers participate in the Section 4 payment card scheme, and what plans the UK Border Agency has to extend the  (a) number and  (b) range of participating retailers.

Damian Green: The Section 4 payment card can be used at over 8,800 retail outlets throughout the UK. The Azure payment card is accepted at all Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys, Morrisons and Co-op Group supermarkets and local shops. The card can also be used at Boots and Peacocks clothing stores. Mothercare will shortly be joining the scheme and Sodexo is in discussions with low cost supermarkets Lidl and Aldi to reconsider their decision not to join the scheme.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much in unspent credit has been recovered from Section 4 payment cards in each month since the scheme was introduced.

Damian Green: The estimated amount of unspent credit recovered from the Section 4 payment card for the first year of its operation is £650,000. The figure is not collated monthly.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the operating costs for the Section 4 payment card scheme were in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Damian Green: The Section 4 payment card scheme is cost neutral, costs being covered by commission from retailers and improved efficiency in UK Border Agency processes.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department at what rate calls to the automated balance check telephone line for users of the Section 4 payment card are charged.

Damian Green: The automated balance check telephone line for users of the Section 4 payment card is a free phone facility. There is no cost to the caller from BT landlines and other landlines provided by other telephone operators. Costs for calls made from mobiles may vary subject to the charges of the specific mobile operator.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there is a multilingual option for users of the Section 4 payment card using the automated balance check telephone line.

Damian Green: There is no multilingual option for users of the Section 4 payment card using the automated balance checking telephone operators. The facility is accessed on average 12,000 times per week with an average call time of 37 seconds.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the UK Border Agency operates a helpline for participating retailers on the operation of the Section 4 payment card.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency does not operate a helpline facility for participating retailers on the operation of the Section 4 payment card. Each affiliate retailer manages their staff training with assistance from Sodexo.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what emergency facilities are available for users of the Section 4 payment card whose weekly resources have been exceeded.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency does not provide any emergency facilities for users of the Section 4 payment card whose weekly resources have been exceeded. The current rate of £39.39 per person, per week is considered to be sufficient to meet the essential living needs of the supported persons.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will consider the merits of increasing the weekly carry-over limit for the Section 4 payment card.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency currently has no plans to review the £5 carry-over limit for supported singles. The £5 carry-over limit does not currently apply to families with children under the age of 18 or expectant mothers.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether retailers are able to credit a Section 4 payment card where a user has returned a purchased item.

Damian Green: There is no provision for retailers to immediately credit a Section 4 payment card where a user has returned a purchased item. Credits appear on the supported persons Section 4 payment card account within 48-hours from the return of the item.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will assess the merits of extending the Section 4 payment card scheme to include charity shops.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency has held discussions with the Association of Charity Shops who canvassed their members on viability of extending the Section 4 payment scheme to include charity shops. The members did not ask to be included in the Section 4 payment card scheme. However, the UK Border Agency is currently in talks with the Red Cross who have indicated an interest in the scheme.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Section 4 payment cards have been reported  (a) lost or stolen or  (b) used without authorisation in each month since the introduction of the scheme.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency does not centrally record the numbers of Section 4 payment cards that have been lost or stolen. The UK Border Agency only tracks replacements, irrespective of the reason for the replacement.
	Cards can be cancelled immediately in the case of loss or theft.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what changes were made to the Section 4 payment card scheme as a consequence of its trial in Scotland.

Damian Green: The Section 4 payment card scheme was not trialled in Scotland. Scotland was the first region in which the Section 4 payment card scheme was implemented. Therefore, no changes were made to the scheme following the first stage of the roll out in Scotland.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what budget advice is provided to individuals using Section 4 payment cards; in what language this advice is available; and if she will place in the Library a copy of such guidance.

Damian Green: Each Section 4 payment card is distributed by the accommodation providers on behalf of the UK Border Agency. The accompanying information is in English and does not contain any budget advice.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the UK Border Agency has received reports of restrictions which retailers have placed on the purchase of certain items by users of Section 4 payment cards.

Damian Green: Restrictions on the type of items that can be purchased with the Section 4 payment card are set by the UK Border Agency not the contracted retailers.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will bring forward proposals to allow the withdrawal of limited cash sums using the Section 4 payment card to enable payment for items or services not accessible through participating retailers.

Damian Green: There are currently no plans to allow the withdrawal of cash sums using the Section 4 payment card to enable payment for items or services not accessible through participating retailers.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the UK Border Agency will bring forward proposals to allow users of the Section 4 payment card to check card balances  (a) online and  (b) in-store at participating retailers.

Damian Green: There are currently no plans to allow users of the Section 4 payment card to check card balances either online or in-store at participating retailers. A free phone automatic balance checking facility is available to enable service users to manage their weekly support.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will bring forward proposals to enable individuals using Section 4 payment cards to use  (a) supermarket loyalty cards and  (b) discount coupons when making purchases.

Damian Green: The ability of individuals to use Section 4 payment cards in conjunction with supermarket loyalty cards and discount coupons is a matter for the participating retailers.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what reports she has received of adverse effects on asylum seekers of the operation of the Section 4 payment card system.

Damian Green: The Asylum Support Partnership has produced a report entitled 'Your inflexible friend: the cost of living without cash' dated October 2010. Although this report only sampled 1% of those who use Azure cards and the vast majority responded positively, it raises a number of points regarding the operation of the Section 4 payment card for failed asylum seekers. The Government are committed to ongoing monitoring of the operation of the system, including through dialogue with voluntary sector partners, but it does not accept that the results from the survey are indicative of the experience of the majority of users.
	In October 2008, the Refugee Council produced a report entitled 'More Token Gestures: A report into the use of vouchers for asylum seekers claiming Section 4 support' dated October 2008.

Asylum: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when  (a) Ministers and  (b) UK Border Agency officials will arrange to meet representatives of the Asylum Support Partnership to discuss the operation of Section 4 payment cards.

Damian Green: There are no plans for Ministers to meet with representatives of the Asylum Support Partnership to discuss the operation of Section 4 payment cards. However, members of the Asylum Support Partnership regularly attend working level meetings with UK Border Agency officials at which Section 4 payment cards and other issues are discussed.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the decision to terminate the UK Border Agency housing contract with Glasgow City Council was taken; for what reasons the contract was terminated; whether the UK Border Agency is liable for payments to Glasgow City Council as a result of the early termination of the contract; with what providers the UK Border Agency intends to rehouse asylum seekers following the termination of the contract; what type of accommodation will be provided; and what discussions the UK Border Agency had with Glasgow City Council on the housing contract before termination occurred.

Damian Green: A contract review allowed the UK Border Agency (UKBA) and Glasgow city council to review the terms of the contract. Discussions were held over a period of months but the two parties were unable to reach agreement on the costs of housing asylum seekers despite the UKBA offering an increase on what are, already, the highest accommodation charges in the UK outside London. I agreed with the final decision to terminate the contract with Glasgow city council just prior to the termination letter being issued on 5 November 2010.
	Asylum seekers currently accommodated by Glasgow city council will be transferred to either Glasgow YMCA or to the Angel Group and will be provided with suitable housing to the equivalent standards as that supplied by Glasgow city council. We are hopeful that in many cases they will be able to remain in the same accommodation. The agency will be liable for early termination costs which have not yet been determined. These costs will be significantly lower than the savings that will now be realised by moving service users to alternative providers already operating in Glasgow.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what daily rate the UK Border Agency paid for asylum seeker accommodation with Glasgow city council.

Damian Green: This information is commercially sensitive and the disclosure of such rates would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of both the Home Office and those companies and local authorities with whom the Home Office enters into contracts but they are the highest in the UK outside London.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what daily rate the UK Border Agency will pay for asylum seeker accommodation with replacement providers following the Agency's decision to terminate its housing contract with Glasgow city council.

Damian Green: This information is commercially sensitive and the disclosure of such rates would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of both the Home Office and those companies and local authorities with whom the Home Office enters into contracts.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment the UK Border Agency has made of the costs incurred by asylum seekers in moving accommodation following the Agency's decision to terminate its housing contract with Glasgow city council.

Damian Green: The incoming accommodation providers will manage and pay the costs associated with moving asylum seekers to alternative accommodation.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) individuals and  (b) families the UK Border Agency is housing in accommodation managed by Glasgow city council.

Damian Green: As of 8 November 2010 Glasgow city council were supporting 274 individuals and 334 families, a combined total of 1,271 individuals.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the timescale is for moving to alternative accommodation asylum seekers housed with Glasgow city council.

Damian Green: The contract with Glasgow city council will terminate on 3 February and we will transfer those affected to an alternative provider by this date. This may not require a physical move given that one of the other accommodation providers in Glasgow also uses Glasgow Housing Association as a provider of accommodation.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assistance the UK Border Agency plans to provide for asylum seekers with removal costs following the Agency's decision to terminate its housing contract with Glasgow city council.

Damian Green: Removal costs will be the responsibility of the incoming provider and not for the affected asylum seekers.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions the UK Border Agency had with  (a) UK Ministers,  (b) the Scottish Executive and  (c) the Scottish Refugee Council prior to the Agency's decision to terminate its housing contract with Glasgow city council.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency advised Home Office Ministers of the intention to terminate the contract and also informed officials at the Scottish Government and the Scottish Refugee Council of the likelihood of termination and of the final decision to terminate the contract prior to the formal termination letter being issued on 5 November 2010.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any asylum seekers being re-housed from accommodation with Glasgow city council will be moved to accommodation outside  (a) Glasgow city and  (b) Scotland.

Damian Green: There are no plans to move asylum seekers currently supported by Glasgow city council either outside of Glasgow or Scotland.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice has been issued by the UK Border Agency to asylum seeker tenants of Glasgow city council regarding their re-housing.

Damian Green: A letter has been issued to all service users currently accommodated by Glasgow city council in Glasgow Housing Association properties advising them of the possibility that they may be moved to alternative accommodation and offering details of support available to them if they have any queries. Further communication is planned to keep the service users advised of future developments.

Asylum: Glasgow

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the UK Border Agency will be contracting with any organisations to assist tenants moving from Glasgow city council accommodation.

Damian Green: The responsibility for providing support and accommodation to service users moving from Glasgow city council rests with the incoming accommodation provider. The incoming accommodation provider will be one of our two remaining regional accommodation providers. The Scottish Refugee Council will be in a position to provide additional advice if required.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Edward Balls: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what dates since 11 May 2010 she met  (a) the Prime Minister,  (b) the Chancellor of the Exchequer and  (c) the Chief Secretary to the Treasury to discuss the comprehensive spending review settlement for her Department.

Theresa May: holding answer 9 November 2010
	I had a number of conversations, meetings and telephone calls with the Prime Minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Chief Secretary to the Treasury during the spending review.

Detention Centres: Children

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children were held in detention awaiting deportation on the most recent date for which figures are available.

Damian Green: National Statistics on children detained solely under Immigration Act powers are published quarterly in the Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom. The Statistical Summary for the second quarter of 2010, the most recent available, coupled with local management information, indicates that just one child was detained with its family awaiting removal as at 30 June 2010.
	This figure is based on management information and is not subject to the detailed checks that apply for National Statistics. It is provisional and may be subject to change.
	Information on people detained solely under Immigration Act powers as at 30 September will be available on 25 November in the Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom, July-September 2010 on the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html

Detention Centres: Children

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children have been detained in each type of accommodation in each location in each of the last five years.

Damian Green: The information requested is not recorded centrally and could be obtained only by the detailed examination of individual case records at disproportionate cost.
	National Statistics on children detained solely under Immigration Act powers are published quarterly in the Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom. Information on people detained solely under Immigration Act powers as at 30 September will be available on 25 November in the Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom, July-September 2010 on the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
	The Government have made clear their commitment to end the detention of children and continues to work with its corporate partners to find an alternative that protects the welfare of children, without undermining UK immigration laws.

Domestic Violence: Arrests

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the number of  (a) arrests and  (b) convictions for domestic violence offences in Dartford constituency in each of the last five years.

Lynne Featherstone: The available data are provided in the following table which shows the number of arrests and convictions for domestic violence offences in Kent between 2005-06 and 2009-10.
	
		
			  Number of arrests and convictions for domestic violence offences in Kent between 2005-06 and 2009-10 
			   Number of domestic violence incidents where an arrest was made relating to the incident  Number of convictions of domestic violence offences( 3) 
			 2005-06(1) 4,517 195 
			 2006-07(1) 6,016 797 
			 2007-08 6,696 1,072 
			 2008-09 7,058 1,152 
			 2009-10(2) - 1,078 
			 (1) For 2005-06 and 2006-07 the number of convictions of domestic violence offences only includes incidents involving adult offenders and adult victims as data were not collected on incidents involving young victims or young offenders. (2) Data were not collected from forces in 2009-10 on the number of domestic violence incidents where an arrest was made relating to the incident. (3) Convictions data are provided by the Crown Prosecution Service.

Immigration Controls: Northern Ireland

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment her Department has made of the effects of implementation of the proposed immigration cap on the academic and research community in Northern Ireland.

Damian Green: We have made it clear that we want to continue attracting the brightest and the best to the UK. As part of this commitment, the Secretary of State for the Home Department launched a consultation over the summer to ensure that we gathered a wide range of views and evidence, before announcing our plans for the first full annual limit. The consultation is now closed and we have received a high volume of responses which are being carefully assessed. The Government will announce their decisions in due course.

Police Custody: Illegal Immigrants

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 2 November 2010,  Official Report, columns 700-1W, on police custody: illegal immigrants, what records she holds on the action taken in those cases where  (a) UK Border Agency officers did not attend a police station and  (b) such an officer attended and the individual was not arrested.

Damian Green: The example given in the previous answer of 2 November 2010 related to police inquiries to the UK Border Agency's London and south-east region about possible clandestine entry to the UK in vehicles (known within UK Border Agency as "lorry drops").
	Of the 286 "lorry drop" requests from the police within this region for the period April to September 2010, 253 were attended by UK Border Agency staff. Of the 33 that were not, 10 were dealt with by serving illegal entry papers by fax. The remaining 23 were not attended for various reasons including insufficient resources. There were 232 arrests in total during this period. The UK Border Agency took no further action against 22 individuals because an immigration offence was not identified.
	Please note, this information is taken from management information tools; it has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols and should be treated as provisional.

Police: Finance

Edward Balls: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to publish the funding allocations for each police authority for  (a) 2011-12,  (b) 2012-13,  (c) 2013-14 and  (d) 2014-15.

Theresa May: holding answer 9 November 2010
	As my right hon. Friend the Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice told the House on 1 November 2010,  Official Report, column 600, we intend to place provisional Home Office Police Grant funding allocations for 2011-12 and indicative funding allocations for 2012-13 to 2014-15 for all police authorities before the House of Commons in early December.

Police: Manpower

Edward Balls: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will estimate the number of officers in each police force area with 30 years' service or more.

Theresa May: holding answer 9 November 2010
	The available data are provided in the following table which shows the number of police officers in each police force area with 30 years service or more, as at 31 March 2010.
	
		
			  Number of police officers in each police force area with 30 years service or more, as at 31 March 2010( 1) 
			   Number of years 
			   30 to 31  31 to 32  32 to 33  33 to 34  34 to 35  Over 35  Total 
			 Avon and Somerset 27 12 0 0 4 4 47 
			 Bedfordshire 11 4 6 3 0 2 26 
			 British Transport Police 38 54 32 28 37 55 244 
			 Cambridgeshire 11 1 1 0 2 1 16 
			 Cheshire (2)- (2)- (2)- (2)- (2)- (2)- (2)- 
			 Cleveland 21 14 6 8 7 4 60 
			 Cumbria 8 3 1 4 0 1 17 
			 Derbyshire 23 17 9 3 7 8 67 
			 Devon and Cornwall 19 14 7 1 9 2 52 
			 Dorset 12 3 2 3 0 0 20 
			 Durham 12 11 4 2 4 3 36 
			 Dyfed-Powys 14 3 4 2 1 0 24 
			 Essex 41 17 10 2 3 6 79 
			 Gloucestershire 2 4 1 1 0 3 11 
			 Greater Manchester 45 2 4 4 5 4 64 
			 Gwent 7 6 0 0 1 1 15 
			 Hampshire 34 8 7 5 4 14 72 
			 Hertfordshire 10 9 9 4 2 6 40 
			 Humberside 15 2 5 3 1 0 26 
			 Kent 30 12 16 10 5 5 78 
			 Lancashire 22 6 7 8 4 3 50 
			 Leicestershire 9 7 6 4 5 3 34 
			 Lincolnshire 6 1 3 4 0 2 16 
			 London, City of 10 4 7 5 2 3 31 
			 Merseyside 49 18 14 23 8 10 122 
			 Metropolitan Police 423 213 135 153 87 143 1,154 
			 Norfolk 2 1 1 2 1 0 7 
			 Northamptonshire 7 3 2 3 0 2 17 
			 Northumbria 12 6 8 6 1 1 34 
			 North Wales 7 12 2 0 0 0 21 
			 North Yorkshire 10 0 1 0 1 0 12 
			 Nottinghamshire 19 12 5 5 5 11 57 
			 South Wales 30 10 6 2 3 2 53 
			 South Yorkshire 13 1 0 3 1 2 20 
			 Staffordshire 22 2 5 3 4 4 40 
			 Suffolk 5 3 2 3 0 0 13 
			 Surrey 23 3 6 1 0 2 35 
			 Sussex 17 7 6 7 1 3 41 
			 Thames Valley 29 5 6 11 6 7 64 
			 Warwickshire 6 2 1 0 0 2 11 
			 West Mercia 32 18 7 9 8 7 81 
			 West Midlands 85 33 30 16 17 17 198 
			 West Yorkshire 52 29 11 14 10 10 126 
			 Wiltshire 14 9 1 2 1 2 29 
			 Total 1,284 601 396 367 257 355 3,260 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items (2) Cheshire is unable to provide length of service figures

UK Border Agency: Northern Ireland

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) full-time and  (b) part-time staff were employed by the UK Border Agency in Northern Ireland in each of the last three years.

Damian Green: The available figures are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  UK Border Agency staff( 1)  in Northern Ireland 
			  As at 31 March  Full -t ime  Part-t ime  All 
			 2007 26 1.4 27.4 
			 2008 41 2.7 43.7 
			 2009 39 3.7 42.7 
			 2010 52 2.02 54.02 
			 (1) Full-time equivalent civil servants, excluding agency workers. Staff figures published after July 2010 include those on paid maternity leave, these are excluded from the above.

Visas: Taiwan

Frank Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department plans to assess the merits of extending visa-free access to the UK for visitors from Taiwan.

Damian Green: The UK lifted its visa regime on visitors from Taiwan on 18 May 2009 as part of a global review of visitor visa regimes.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the name is of each location in Afghanistan from which Tornados are capable of operating; and how many of these have only a single runway suitable for operating Tornados.

Nick Harvey: I am withholding the information as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the ability of Harriers to operate in Afghanistan from runways which have been rendered partially unusable.

Nick Harvey: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my noble Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Lord Astor of Hever) to the noble Lord (Lord West of Spithead) in another place on 11 November 2010,  Official Report, House of Lords, columns WA106.

Air Force: Military Bases

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  for how many hours  (a) RAF Wainfleet,  (b) RAF Donna Nook,  (c) RAF Holbeach,  (d) RAF West Freugh,  (e) RAF Tain and  (f) the Cape Wrath Range were in use for training operations for each aircraft type in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many passes took place at  (a) RAF Wainfleet,  (b) RAF Donna Nook,  (c) RAF Holbeach,  (d) RAF West Freugh,  (e) RAF Tain and  (f) the Cape Wrath Range for each type of (i) RAF aircraft and (ii) non-RAF aircraft in each year since 2004; and from which airbase the flights originated.

Nick Harvey: The number of passes that have taken place at DTE Donna Nook, DTE Holbeach, DTE Tain and DTE Cape Wrath for each aircraft type since 2004 and the air base from which the flights originated are contained in the following tables:
	
		
			  DTE Donna Nook 
			  Number 
			  Station  Aircraft  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  2009  2010( 1) 
			 RAF Coningsby Typhoon - - - 117 - - 35 
			 RAF Coningsby Jaguar - - 1,708 834 - - - 
			 RAF Coningsby Tornado F3 84 157 - - - - - 
			 RAF Coningsby Tornado GR4 - - - - - - 442 
			 RAF Coningsby Tornado F3, Tornado GR4, Harrier GR9 (41(R) Sqn) - - 266 1,163 1,473 1,066 - 
			 RAF Coltishall Jaguar 4,915 3,473 558 - - - - 
			 RAF Marham Tornado GR4 3,959 3,513 2,698 1,696 1,759 1,473 1,452 
			 RAF Cottesmore and RAF Wittering Harrier GR9 1,061 1,142 977 412 232 270 321 
			 Unknown Harrier GR9 - 75 - - - - - 
			 RAF Leuchars Tornado F3 83 114 198 270 - - - 
			 RAF Lossiemouth Tornado GR4 121 61 185 96 15 84 161 
			 RAF Valley Hawk 24 54 - - 3 43 6 
			 RAF Benson Merlin 9 397 227 185 274 323 405 
			 RAF Odiham Chinook 169 336 592 156 237 404 275 
			 Unknown A-10 - - - 980 - - - 
			 RAF Lakenheath Blackhawk - - 34 46 - 20 40 
			 RAF Lakenheath F-15 3,150 2,997 2,886 2,512 1,904 2,508 1,379 
			 Air Warfare Centre Trials on all aircraft types in current use with British forces 226 632 1,920 3,597 4,539 3,309 1,495 
			 Dishforth Apache - - - - - 6 - 
			 RAF Leeming Tornado F3 310 21 257 182 - - - 
			 RAF Leeming Hawk - - - - 60 120 66 
			 BAE Hawk 289 124 219 329 159 268 121 
			 Joint Forward Air Control Training and Standard Unit (JFACTSU) Various aircraft types - - - - - - 823 
			 RAF Cranwell King Air - - - - 7 7 6 
			 Exercise Various aircraft types - - 151 - - - - 
			 Exercise Various aircraft types - - - 25 - - - 
			 Exercise Various aircraft types - - - - - - 868 
			 Exercise Unknown - 642 - - - - - 
			 RAF Shawbury Griffin - - - - - - 4 
			 Visit Unknown - 61 - - - - - 
			 RAF Linton-on-Ouse Unknown - 20 - - - - - 
			 Boscombe Down Unknown 23 - 29 - 35 - - 
			 Army Air Corps Lynx - - - 24 46 - - 
			 RAF Lyneham C-130 - 1 1 4 - - 50 
			 Total  14,423 13,820 12,906 12,628 10,743 9,901 7,949 
			 (1) To 31 October. 
		
	
	
		
			  DTE Tain 
			  Number 
			  Station  Aircraft  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  2009  2010( 1) 
			 RAF Marham and RAF Lossiemouth Tornado GR4 20,298 20,999 19,653 15,784 13,158 16,940 12,904 
			 RAF Coltishall Jaguar 247 102 38 4 - - - 
			 RAF Cottesmore and RAF Wittering Harrier GR9 254 59 39 145 16 56 72 
			 Unknown Hawk - 40 13 46 9 6 64 
			 RAF Benson Merlin - - - - 16 - - 
			 RAF Benson Puma - - - - - - 75 
			 RAF Coningsby Typhoon - - - 114 16 14 - 
			 RAF Odiham Chinook 22 - 18 241 182 - 8 
			 RAF Lakenheath MH-53 259 - - - - - - 
			 RAF Lakenheath Blackhawk - - - - - 211 - 
			 RAF Lakenheath F-15 204 153 249 211 135 340 28 
			 Unknown C-130 4 10 15 6 6 3 - 
			 Royal Navy Sea Harrier 345 9 - - 55 - - 
			 Army Air Corps Lynx 49 - - - - 252 - 
			 US Navy F/A-18 199 - 68 - - - - 
			 US Navy F-14 6 - - - - - - 
			 Swedish Air Force Gripen - 85 - - - - 48 
			 Army Air Corps AH-64D - - 33 - - - - 
			 French Air Force Mirage and Rafale - - 2 - 139 102 - 
			 Royal Saudi Air Force Unknown - - - 26 - - - 
			 Lyneham Flying Club B28 - - - - 3 - - 
			 Belgian Air Force F-16 - - - - - - 16 
			 Total  21,887 21,457 20,128 16,577 13,735 17,924 13,215 
			 (1) To 31 October. 
		
	
	
		
			  DTE Holbe a ch 
			  Number 
			  Station  Type  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  2009( 1)  2010( 2) 
			 RAF Coningsby Typhoon - - - - - - 283 
			 RAF Coningsby Typhoon, Tornado (F3), Tornado (GR4), Harrier (GR9) (41(R) Sqn) - - - - 1,148 179 - 
			 RAF Coningsby Jaguar, Tornado (F3), Tornado (GR4), Harrier (GR9) (41(R) Sqn) 88 606 1,496 1,428 - - - 
			 RAF Coltishall Jaguar 7,002 4,408 712 - - - - 
			 RAF Marham Tornado (GR4) 2,870 4,324 3,229 2,442 2,935 1,874 - 
			 RAF Cottesmore and RAF Wittering Harrier (GR9) 10,084 8,806 7,454 5,371 7,383 3,647 3,809 
			 RAF Lossiemouth Tornado (GR4) 122 70 67 83 9 - - 
			 RAF Marham and RAF Lossiemouth Tornado (GR4) - - - - - - 1,342 
			 RAF Benson Puma 97 127 111 - - - 202 
			  Merlin - - - - - - 83 
			  Puma/Merlin - - - 165 62 135 - 
			 RAF Odiham Chinook 243 - 37 140 115 240 90 
			 RAF Lakenheath HH-60 Pave Hawk - - - - - - 22 
			  F-15 2,943 4,613 2,963 3,589 1,682 1,401 1,104 
			 RAF Leeming Tornado (F3) 675 - 119 - 19 - - 
			  Tornado Hawk - 277 - - - - - 
			 RAF Valley Hawk - 2 1 - 2 87 7 
			 RAF Leuchars Tornado - - - 146 - - - 
			 MOD Boscombe Down Harrier 27 - - 59 - - - 
			  Typhoon/Tornado - - - - 26 - - 
			  Tornado/Harrier/Jaguar - - 90 - - - - 
			 Yeovilton (RNAS) Lynx 11 - - - - - 17 
			  Sea Harrier FA-2 30 - - - - - - 
			 RAF Cranwell Dominie - - - - 2 - - 
			 BAe Warton Tornado 10 42 9 - 49 22 - 
			 Aviano (USAF) F-16 534 - - - - - - 
			 Minot AFB (USAF) B-52 16 - - - - - - 
			 Dyess AFB (USAF) B-1 12 - 18 - - - - 
			 Belgian Air Force F-16 - - 54 - - - - 
			 Twenthe, Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) F-16 - - 19 - - - - 
			 Leeuwarden (RNLAF) F-16 77 64 - - - - - 
			 Wattisham Lynx/Apache - - 125 331 - 65 - 
			  Apache - - - - 58 - 26 
			  Lynx 92 106 - - - - 44 
			 RAF Shawbury Griffin - - - - - - 4 
			 Unknown Tutor - - - - - - 13 
			 Total  24,933 23,445 16,504 13,754 13,490 7,650 7,046 
			 (1) July to December only. (2) To 30 September. 
		
	
	
		
			  DTE Cape Wrath( 1) 
			  Number 
			  Station  Aircraft  2006  2007  2008  2009  2010( 2) 
			 RAF Lossiemouth and RAF Marham Tornado 508 302 419 321 189 
			 RAF Coningsby Typhoon - - 13 87 - 
			 French Air Force Mirage - - - 24 - 
			 RAF Cottesmore and RAF Wittering Harrier (GR9) - 40 64 68 - 
			 RAF Lakenheath F-15 181 - - - - 
			 Total  689 342 496 500 189 
			 (1) Information relating to DTE Cape Wrath can be provided only from 2006. (2) To 31 October. 
		
	
	RAF Wainfleet closed on 3 December 2009.
	Information regarding the hours that the Defence Training Estate (DTE) Donna Nook, DTE Holbeach, MOD West Freugh, DTE Tain and DTE Cape Wrath have been used for training operations for each aircraft type is not held in the format requested.
	Information relating to the passes that have taken place at MOD West Freugh for aircraft since 2004 and the airbase from which the flights originated is also not held in the format requested.

Armed Forces: Conditions of Employment

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average number of years' service is for  (a) a Royal Marine commando and  (b) an army infantry soldier.

Andrew Robathan: The average length of service of all ranks in the Royal Marines, other than commissioned, and across all trades is 11 years and two months.
	The average length of service of all ranks, other than commissioned, in the Army infantry is seven years and nine months.

Armed Forces: Training

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent estimate he has made of the average cost to the public purse of training an officer cadet in  (a) the Royal Marines,  (b) the Army,  (c) the RAF and  (d) the Royal Navy for a commission as a junior officer.

Nick Harvey: The following estimates, based on approximate figures, have been made of the cost of training an officer cadet through to their commission as a junior Officer.
	A junior Royal Marine Officer's training costs some £93,000. Other than local familiarisation training a graduate from Commando Training Centre Royal Marines is fully deployable.
	Junior Officers in other services would be required to take on further training (Phase Two) to specialise in their chosen field, before being fully deployable. However, Phase One costs are as follows:
	For a junior Royal Navy Officer Phase One training costs some £42,000.
	For a junior Army Officer Phase One training costs some £54,000.
	For a junior RAF Officer Phase One training costs some £49,000.

Armed Forces: Training

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average cost to the public purse was of training to deployable status  (a) a Royal Marine and  (b) an infantryman in the latest period for which figures are available.

Nick Harvey: holding answer 15 November 2010
	The training cost for a Royal Marine from recruitment to graduation from the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines (CTCRM) is in the region of £54,000. Other than local familiarisation training, a graduate from CTCRM is fully deployable.
	The training cost for an Infantry soldier from recruitment to graduation from the Infantry Training Centre is in the region of £31,000. However, a soldier is not deployable at that stage and will undertake further training to become operationally effective within their unit. These further costs are not collected centrally and will include an element of local training where the cost: is not easily identifiable, for example one to one instruction by a Non-Commissioned Officer improving tactical knowledge of a unit's operational function.

Chinook Helicopters

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons he reduced the number of Chinook helicopters on order from 22 to 12.

Peter Luff: There could be no reduction in the number of Chinook helicopters on order as none have yet been ordered.

Defence Estates: Decontamination

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment his Department has made of the extent of contamination in parts of the defence estate under consideration for disposal; and what estimate his Department has made of the likely clean-up costs.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has not yet made an assessment of the level of contamination in parts of the defence estate under consideration for disposal. When a site is declared surplus to requirements it is normal for MOD to undertake a Land Quality Assessment (LQA), the objective being to provide sufficient information on land quality to inform decision makers and prospective purchasers and will quantify the contaminated land risks on a logical and rational basis.
	The likely clean-up costs and value of land will ultimately be determined by the market, based on the available information, prevailing planning situation and its proposed use.

Defence Estates: Decontamination

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment his Department has made of the level of contamination of each airfield under consideration for closure; and what estimate his Department has made of the cost of clean-up in each case.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has not yet made an assessment of the level of contamination in each airfield under consideration for disposal. When an airfield is declared surplus to requirements it is normal for the MOD to undertake a Land Quality Assessment (LQA), the objective being to provide sufficient information on land quality to inform decision makers and prospective purchasers and will quantify the contaminated land risks on a logical and rational basis.
	The likely clean-up costs and value of land will ultimately be determined by the market, based on the available information, prevailing planning situation and its proposed use.

Defence: Expenditure

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the information provided by his Department to NATO on defence expenditure for the purpose of calculating UK defence expenditure as a proportion of gross domestic product will include spending on the  (a) Stabilisation Fund,  (b) Conflict Prevention Fund,  (c) Discretionary Peacekeeping Fund and  (d) Single Intelligence Account.

Gerald Howarth: holding answer 12 November 2010
	None of the funds in question were included in the estimate that future UK Defence spending will continue to meet the NATO target.

Devonport Dockyard

Sheryll Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for Devonport as the home of the amphibious fleet.

Andrew Robathan: On current plans, Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport will remain the main operating base of the amphibious fleet.

Human Rights

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he made of the cost to his Department and its non-departmental public bodies of compliance with  (a) domestic,  (b) European and  (c) other international human rights requirements in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not collate information on the costs of compliance with human rights requirements and such information could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The MOD takes account of the domestic and international human rights framework in developing its policies and practices.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many Joint Strike Fighters have been purchased for initial operational test and evaluation; what type they were; and what the cost of each was;
	(2)  if he will estimate the cost to date of the initial operational test and evaluation phase for the Joint Strike Fighter 35B;
	(3)  how many flight hours there have been during the initial operational test and evaluation phase for the Joint Strike Fighter 35B.

Andrew Robathan: The UK requires three instrumented Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft to conduct joint initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) with the US armed forces. The low rate initial production contract signed in 2009 contained the first two UK short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) JSFs and set a target unit price at approximately £100 million. The unit price for the third aircraft is still subject to commercial sensitivity, but we expect a reduction in unit price in line with industry cost improvement and production learner requirements. Importantly, participation in joint IOT&E with the US services will meet the majority of our test and evaluation requirements as the mission systems are common between variants. The flying phase of IOT&E is not expected to commence before 2012.

Military Aircraft

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what platforms will continue to mount a maritime search radar after the withdrawal of the Nimrod; whether such a radar is to be mounted on any other aircraft which will be tasked to carry out long-range search-and-rescue; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 11 November 2010
	A range of other military aircraft provide search and rescue radar capability to the armed forces. While E-3D Sentry is optimised for the air to air role, its radar has a maritime search mode. Hercules C-130 aircraft are fitted with radar systems that provide basic maritime search capabilities. RAF Sea King HAR 3/3 A, Royal Navy Merlin Mk 1 and the RN Lynx helicopters all possess short-range surface search radar for use in maritime search and rescue work.

Military Bases

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will urge the US Administration to remove stores of cluster bombs on US bases in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: The US Administration has removed its stores of cluster munitions from its bases in the UK. There are no US or any other foreign cluster munition stockpiles in the UK.

NATO: European Naval Force

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will take steps to ensure data sharing between the NATO Maritime Force and the European Naval Force.

Gerald Howarth: The UK Government continue actively to encourage member states of NATO and the EU to ensure that the data generated by present and future maritime sensors and systems are shared by all relevant maritime forces.

Navy: Accidents

Ian Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what records his Department keeps of collisions between Royal Navy vessels and naval vessels of other countries; on how many occasions in the last 10 years Royal Navy ships or submarines have been in collision with vessels of the French navy; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: The Department keeps records of any incident between Royal Navy vessels and other vessels, including with warships of other countries. This includes all signals, formal reports, investigations, charts, data recordings and tape recordings.
	In the last 10 years, there has been one occasion when a Royal Navy vessel has been in a collision with a French Navy vessel. This occurred in February 2009 between the Royal Navy submarine HMS Vanguard and the French Submarine Le Triomphant.

Nimrod Aircraft

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to review the role of the Royal Air Force in Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance in support of operations in Afghanistan following his decision not to bring the Nimrod MRA4 into service.

Andrew Robathan: Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) capability has a vital role to play in military operations in Afghanistan; as with all requirements, we keep our ISTAR capabilities, including those provided by the Royal Air Force, under constant review to ensure that they continue to meet our mission objectives.

Rosyth Dockyard: Radiation Exposure

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 4 November 2010,  Official Report, column 957W, on Rosyth Dockyard: Radiation Exposure, by what mechanism Babcock Marine (Rosyth) Ltd reports to his Department on compliance with radiation protection regulations; how many visits have been made by inspectors from the relevant regulators since the contract was signed; what the monetary value is of the contract between Babcock Marine (Rosyth) Ltd and his Department; and if he will place in the Library copies of all radiation protection monitoring reports made since the contract commenced.

Andrew Robathan: The Nuclear Safety Infrastructure and Post Nuclear Operation and Maintenance contract between Babcock Marine (Rosyth) Ltd and the Ministry of Defence covers a three year period from April 2010 to March 2013. The value of this contract is approximately £11 million.
	The contract requires that the company report all radiological occurrences or unplanned nuclear events at Rosyth to the Department. This is achieved through routine contract management and reporting processes. Additionally there is a bi-annual, Regulatory Interface Forum attended by the MOD and Babcock Marine (Rosyth) Ltd, where any such occurrences would be discussed.
	Rosyth Dockyard, which is owned and operated by Babcock Marine, is regulated by the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) and the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency. Site Inspectors visit the Rosyth site on a regular basis; details on the exact number of visits are not held by the MOD and are a matter for Babcock Marine or the regulatory bodies.
	Quarterly monitoring reports are produced by the NII and are published by the Health and Safety Executive.

Royal Navy: Manpower

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the likely effects on  (a) his Department's operations at Kentigern House in Glasgow and  (b) HMNB Clyde of the proposed reduction by 25,000 in the number of his Department's staff by 2015.

Andrew Robathan: The Strategic Defence and Security Review stated that the Ministry of Defence civil service would decrease by 25,000 as the requirement for civilian support decreases in line with the development of new force structures, restructuring of defence capabilities, rationalisation of the defence estate and realisation of other non-front line savings. While no decisions have been taken on where those changes will be made, detailed proposals to deliver the changes will be brought forward in consultation with the Department's trade unions as quickly as possible as further work is taken forward.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Adult Education

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people have taken up a free training place for a first full level 2 qualification for those aged over 25 years in each of the last five years.

John Hayes: The following table shows the number of further education courses in each academic year where learners aged 25 or over are recorded as receiving fee remission due to the learner having a full level 2 entitlement.
	
		
			  Courses for learners aged 25 or over that received fee remission due to a full level 2 entitlement 
			   Further education/learner responsive  Train to Gain 
			 2004/05 4,700 (1)- 
			 2005/06 27,600 (1)- 
			 2006/07 53,400 (1)- 
			 2007/08 58,100 (1)- 
			 2008/09 33,700 501,700 
			 (1) This field was added to the employer responsive data collection from 2008/09, and hence data are not available for Train to Gain for earlier years.  Notes: 1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest hundred. 2. Figures for 2008/09 are not directly comparable with earlier years due to a change in funding methodology. 3. Further education learners were returned on the FE ILR until 2007/08, and on the LR ILR from 2008/09. 4. Age is based on age at the start of the academic year. Figures include a small number of learners with unknown age.  Source: FE/LR ad ER Individualised Learner Record.

Adult Education: Fees and Charges

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has for the future level of fees for those aged over 25 years in respect of a first full level 2 course; and if he will make a statement.

John Hayes: The spending review announcement on 20 October 2010 set out the need for a rebalancing of investment from public spending towards greater contributions from individuals and employers who benefit most and can afford to pay. The skills strategy and associated investment strategy for post-19 further education (FE) and skills, to be published later this autumn, will confirm our funding strategy for the spending review period, including the future investment in older learners.
	In the 2010/11 academic year the public funding paid to FE colleges and training organisations for learners who are not eligible for full funding assumes a 50% contribution from the learner with the remainder funded by Government.
	FE colleges and training organisations are autonomous and are responsible for setting their own fees policy.

AgustaWestland: Finance

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the financial assistance to AgustaWestland announced in the Comprehensive Spending Review has been approved by the Shareholder Executive.

Edward Davey: holding answer 12 November 2010
	The Shareholder Executive is one of the bodies responsible for providing advice to Ministers on the proposed terms of government financial assistance. The Shareholder Executive is not responsible for approving decisions to provide financial assistance; these decisions are taken by Ministers in the context of the spending review. The Government are currently in discussions with AgustaWestland regarding the proposed terms of Government financial assistance to the company, and the Shareholder Executive is involved in these discussions. Details of the proposed terms under discussion cannot be disclosed as they are subject to negotiations and are commercially sensitive.

Animation: Higher Education

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether animation degrees will be classified as degrees in a science, technology, engineering and mathematics subject for the purpose of the Government's proposed higher education funding changes.

John Hayes: We will set out our proposals for the future definition and funding treatment of priority subjects in the forthcoming higher education White Paper.

Apprentices

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what long-term role he plans for  (a) apprenticeship training associations and  (b) group training associations in respect of the new apprenticeship places announced in the comprehensive spending review; and if he will make a statement.

John Hayes: The increased funding announced in the comprehensive spending review is participation funding for adult apprenticeship training. This will mean that we will have in place sufficient funding for 75,000 more adult apprenticeship places than the previous Government were providing.
	The Skills Funding Agency (SFA) allocates participation funding to colleges and providers to reflect the pattern of employer demand and funding is moved in year to reflect local need. We have no plans to target this funding at specific types of provider.

Apprentices

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the apprenticeship training associations pilot schemes funded by the Skills Funding Agency.

John Hayes: The Apprenticeship Training Agency (ATA) model is being piloted and progress will be monitored by the National Apprenticeship Service (NAS). Early evidence from the pilots is positive and they are proving effective in encouraging additional smaller employers to take on apprentices for the first time.
	The ATAs contracts started in autumn 2009 and after an initial development phase they began recruiting in early 2010. The National Apprenticeship Service will review the 12 pilots in 2011.
	An ATA code of practice is currently being developed by the NAS and tested with the ATA pilot organisations. This will test the theory of the model against the actual delivery and also give us an indication of how they are working in practice.

Apprentices

Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people participated in an apprentice scheme funded by his Department between 2005 and 2010.

John Hayes: The following shows the number of apprenticeship starts in England from 2004/05 to 2008/09, the latest year for which final data are available.
	
		
			  Apprenticeship programme starts, 2004/05 to 2008/09 
			  Academic year  Number of starts 
			 2004/05 189,000 
			 2005/06 175,000 
			 2006/07 184,400 
			 2007/08 224,800 
			 2008/09 239,900 
			  Notes: 1. All figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 2. Information on the number of apprenticeship starts is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 16 November: http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current  Source: Individualised Learner Record

Business

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of companies  (a) in each industry sector,  (b) of each workforce size and  (c) of each public listing status which comprise the 6 per cent. of high growth business referred to in his Department's document, Backing small business.

Mark Prisk: BIS has not made an estimate of the number of companies in each sector, of each size band, and of each public listing status which comprise the 6% high growth businesses.
	However, further detail about this group of businesses identified as high growth is included in the research report published by NESTA titled "Measuring Business Growth", available at
	http://www.nesta.org.uk/publications/reports/assets/features/measuring_business_growth

Business

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has made an estimate of the number of  (a) restructurings and  (b) insolvencies of small and medium-sized enterprises likely to occur in the next 12 months.

Edward Davey: Official Statistics covering corporate restructurings are not compiled and no assessment has been made of numbers expected in the next 12 months.
	The data sources used to compile the Insolvency Service's corporate insolvency statistics do not contain the necessary information from which small and medium-sized firms may be separately identified. The Insolvency Service has not made any assessment of the numbers of insolvencies among small and medium-sized enterprises in the next 12 months.

Business

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to his Department's document Backing small business, what level of per annum proportional growth his Department classifies as transformational.

Mark Prisk: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills will set out its plans for business improvement in more detail shortly.

Business

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding he plans to allocate for the proposed network of growth hubs, referred to in his Department's document Backing small business, in the comprehensive spending review period; and whether funding for those hubs will be drawn from the same budget as that allocated for the proposed network of technology and innovation centres.

Mark Prisk: At least £200 million will be made available for technology and innovation centres over the course of the spending review period. Funding allocations for growth hubs are still to be determined as part of the process of prioritising activity in line with the spending review settlement. The Government will confirm funding once this process is complete.

Business

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on the inclusion of a country-by-country financial reporting standard in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development guidelines for multinational companies.

Edward Davey: The Government are seeking to address and take forward issues relating to taxation and disclosure during the current negotiations to update the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.
	The OECD's Task Force on Tax and Development, is currently conducting a detailed examination of the issue of country-by-country reporting. This task force is expected to report within a year.

Consumer Focus

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the likely effects on the workload of Citizens Advice of his decision to abolish Consumer Focus and transfer its functions to that body.

Edward Davey: On 14 October, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) announced changes to the UK Consumer and Competition bodies:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/consumer-issues
	In that statement he outlined proposals including the transfer of the functions of Consumer Focus to the national bodies for the Citizens Advice service in England and Wales and in Scotland.
	BIS are now discussing implementation with the consumer bodies including Citizens Advice and Citizens Advice Scotland and with the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland Governments. As also announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, BIS will consult publicly on the main elements of the proposals in the new year.

Cumbria University: Finance

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will allocate funding to the university of Cumbria to enable that university to extend its programme of courses offered off its established campus facilities in West Cumbria.

John Hayes: Decisions on the allocation of funding to individual institutions are made by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) within the limits set by the overall level of funding made available by the Department.

EU Grants and Loans

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the European Commission on the disbursement of European Regional Development Fund money through regional development agencies.

Mark Prisk: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has had no recent discussions with the European Commission on the disbursement of European Regional Development Fund money through regional development agencies.

EU Grants and Loans

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding from the European Regional Development Fund he plans to allocate to the English regions in the period from 2010 to 2015.

Mark Prisk: European Regional Development Fund allocations to each of the English regions for the period 2007-13 have already been made and are shown in the following table. These allocations may be spent up until end 2015.
	
		
			  2007-13 ERDF allocations 
			  M illion 
			   €  £( 1) 
			  England   
			 North West 756 651 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 584 503 
			 North East 376 324 
			 East Midlands 268 231 
			 West Midlands 400 345 
			 East of England 111 96 
			 London 182 157 
			 South East 24 20 
			 South West Comp 125 107 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 458 395 
			 Total England 3,283 2,829 
			 (1) Approximate values.

Executives

Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the number of small and medium-sized enterprises run by  (a) women and  (b) men in England and Wales.

Mark Prisk: BIS estimate that there were 4,381,000 small and medium-sized enterprises in England and Wales at the start of 2009. Of these, BIS currently estimate that 14.3% (630,000) were majority-led by women, 61.6% (2,697,000) were majority-led by men and 24% (1,051,000) were equally led by men and women.

Green Investment Bank

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the funding the Green Investment Bank will attract in the next five years.

Mark Prisk: I refer the hon. Member to the Chancellor's spending review statement of 20 October 2010,  Official Report, column 949.
	As the Chancellor has announced, we will be funding the Green Investment Bank (GIB) from £1 billion of departmental budgets, as well as from significant proceeds from the sale of Government's assets.
	While it would not be appropriate to speculate on the timing of asset sales, the use of these proceeds should provide opportunities for additional funding to be available over the next five years.
	Furthermore, we are committed to working with the private sector to establish a GIB that is effective in mobilising additional private sector investment into green infrastructure projects.

Higher Education

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what degrees offered at universities are classified as science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects.

John Hayes: There is no formal, single classification covering the broad grouping of subjects that typically includes Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). However, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has traditionally taken the view that STEM subjects are covered by groups A-K of the Joint Academic Coding System (JACS). The high-level subject groups in the JACS are:
	
		
			   Subject 
			 A Medicine and Dentistry 
			 B Subjects allied to Medicine 
			 C Biological Sciences 
			 D Veterinary Sciences, Agriculture and related subjects 
			 F Physical Sciences 
			 G Mathematical and Computer Sciences 
			 H Engineering 
			 J Technologies 
			 K Architecture, Building and Planning 
			 L Social studies 
			 M Law 
			 N Business and Administrative studies 
			 P Mass Communications and Documentation 
			 Q Linguistics, Classics and related subjects 
			 R European Languages, Literature and related subjects 
			 T Eastern, Asiatic, African, American and Australasian Languages, Literature and related subjects 
			 V Historical and Philosophical studies 
			 W Creative Arts and Design 
			 X Education 
		
	
	Full codings can be found at:
	http://www.hesa.ac.uk/dox/jacs/JACS_complete.pdf

Higher Education Innovation Fund

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what projects the Higher Education Innovation Fund is assisting in 2010-11; and if he will make a statement.

John Hayes: The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) allocates Higher Education Innovation Funding (HEIF) on a formulaic basis to all higher education institutions in England. These institutions decide which activities to undertake in accordance with their individual strategies. The current strategies are available on the Institute for Knowledge Transfer's website at:
	www.ikt.org.uk

Higher Education: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people in  (a) Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency and  (b) the London Borough of Bexley applied for a university place in the last 12 months; and how many of those were successful.

John Hayes: The information is in the following table.
	Applicants who were not accepted for entry will include: individuals who did not receive any offer; individuals who received an offer (conditional or unconditional) but decided not to go to university; individuals who received a conditional offer and fail to meet the specific conditions (e.g. they do not achieve certain grades); and individuals who decided to withdraw from the UCAS system.
	
		
			  Applicants and accepted applicants to full-time undergraduate courses in UK HEIs from Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency and the London borough of Bexley, 2010 
			   Applicants  Accepted applicants 
			 Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency 916 644 
			 London borough of Bexley 2,440 1,710 
			  Source: UCAS provisional end of year data (represents applicants and accepted applicants at 13 October 2010; end of year data will be available from 20 January 2011

Higher Education: Finance

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received from universities on the proposed reduction in the level of public funding of universities.

John Hayes: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and ministerial colleagues have received representations from all of the higher education representative bodies and many individual institutions on the future of higher education funding. My colleagues and I hold regular meetings with such organisations.

Higher Education: Finance

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what modelling his Department has undertaken for the purposes of its impact assessment of the proposed reduction in teaching grants.

John Hayes: The Government will publish a full impact assessment when we put formal proposals to Parliament for amending the legislation that underpins higher education funding and student support. The Government will undertake a further impact assessment of any wider changes proposed as a result of a Higher Education White Paper, and this will be published alongside the White Paper in the winter.

Higher Education: Private Sector

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the potential role for private sector providers of higher education following the implementation of proposed reforms to the higher education system.

John Hayes: The Government want to make it easier for new providers who can offer excellent teaching and a high-quality experience for students to enter the higher education sector. However, this is one of a number of institutional issues in the wake of Lord Browne's independent review of higher education and student finance which requires thorough debate and consultation. We intend therefore to publish a Higher Education White Paper with proposals to which experts from the sector can react, leading to a Higher Education Bill.

Innovation

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make assistance available for businesses in the same sector as each of his proposed innovation centres which are not located in the same region as the centre.

John Hayes: The proposed technology and innovation centres will be national in scope and accessed by businesses in the same sector regardless of location.

Innovation

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on what date he expects each of his proposed innovation centres to be  (a) built and  (b) in operation.

John Hayes: The network of Technology and Innovation Centres will further develop existing regional development agency (RDA) funded centres which are excellent and establish a limited number of new centres.
	New centres will be established on a 'needs for basis' in the context of the Technology Strategy Board's overall programme of work, and we cannot therefore specify dates on which they will be built and in operation at this stage. However, the Technology Strategy Board will identify its strategic priorities for the upcoming comprehensive spending review (CSR) period and the areas for which it will assess the need for new centres through more detailed work in partnership with industry, academe and stakeholders, including wider government, in April 2011.

Innovation

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has assessed the likely requirement for non-EU nationals to work in his proposed innovation centres.

John Hayes: The Government have always been clear that we will continue to allow the brightest and the best to come to the UK, including top scientists and researchers. Centres may benefit from recruiting non-EU nationals to meet the highly specialised skills requirements they will have. This will be a matter for individual centres, although they will have to work within the framework of rules regulating non-EU migration.

Innovation

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what plans he has for his proposed innovation centres to engage with  (a) primary schools,  (b) secondary schools and  (c) further education colleges;
	(2)  whether there will be a duty on his proposed innovation centres to undertake community outreach work.

John Hayes: We expect the Technology and Innovation Centres to engage formally with further education colleges, and utilise schemes such as Knowledge Transfer partnerships, where appropriate, to ensure the relevant flow of people and skills that will help business exploit new and emerging technologies.
	We will also encourage the Technology and Innovation Centres to undertake appropriate outreach activities with local communities and schools.

Minimum Wage

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has for future changes to the level of the minimum wage.

Edward Davey: The coalition agreement states that Government supports the national minimum wage (NMW) because of the protection it gives low income workers and the incentives to work it provides.
	The independent Low Pay Commission advises Government on NMW issues and makes recommendations on the rates each year. The LPC will report to Government again in February 2011. The Government will make decisions on the level of the NMW based on the LPC's recommendations.

Myasthenia Gravis: Research

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding his Department allocated for research relating to myasthenia gravis in  (a) 2010-11 and  (b) each of the previous three years.

John Hayes: The Medical Research Council (MRC) is one of the main agencies through which the Government support medical and clinical research.
	In the last three years, MRC expenditure on research relating to myasthenia gravis was as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2007/08 214,000 
			 2008/09 323,000 
			 2009/10 259,000 
		
	
	Figures for 2010/11 are not yet available.

Myasthenia Gravis: Research

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department plans to provide for research relating to myasthenia gravis in each of the next three financial years.

John Hayes: The Medical Research Council (MRC) is one of the main agencies through which the Government support medical and clinical research. In keeping with the Haldane principle, prioritisation of an individual research council's spending within its allocation is not a decision for Ministers. The MRC will make decisions on its priorities once its allocation is clear.
	The MRC funds investigator-led research in response-mode and encourages research proposals from the academic community and always welcomes high quality applications for support into any aspect of human health and these are judged in open competition with other demands on funding. Awards are made according to their scientific quality and importance to human health.

New Businesses

Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the number of new businesses started by  (a) men and  (b) women in England in the last 12 months.

Mark Prisk: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills do not produce estimates of the number of new businesses started by men and women.
	Official data on business start-ups and closures are published by the Office for National Statistics in the 'Business Demography' publication. However, since gender is not collected on the administrative systems used to produce this data, it is not possible to provide this information by gender.

News International

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 14 October 2010,  Official Report, column 367W, on News International, whether  (a) he and  (b) the Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries discussed with (i) James Murdoch and (ii) Rebekah Brooks (A) the Metropolitan Police's investigation on telephone hacking and blagging and (B) News Corporation's bid for BSkyB; and if he will make a statement.  [Official Report, 27 January 2011, Vol. 522, c. 3MC.]

Edward Vaizey: holding answer 4 November 2010
	The Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills had a short introductory telephone conversation with James Murdoch on 15 July during which the News Corporation bid for BSkyB was raised. They did not discuss the Metropolitan police's investigation on telephone hacking.
	In my role as a joint BIS/DCMS Minister, I met Rebekah Brooks on 12 July. During this meeting neither News Corporation's bid for BSkyB, nor the Metropolitan police's investigation on telephone hacking were discussed.

Office for Fair Access

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  how many people were employed in the Office for Fair Access in  (a) 2008,  (b) 2009 and  (c) 2010;
	(2)  what funding he plans to allocate to the Office for Fair Access to take account of his Department's proposed changes to higher education funding in each year between 2010 and 2015;
	(3)  how many staff he expects the Office for Fair Access to employ in each year between 2011 and 2015.

John Hayes: The Office for Fair Access employed four people including the Director in 2008, 2009 and 2010. Staffing for future years will be a matter for the Director to determine based on the resource allocated to him. OFFA's budget for 2010-11 was £464,000. Allocations for future years will be announced in due course.
	The future status and role of OFFA is currently under review and we will bring forward proposals in the forthcoming Higher Education White Paper.

One NorthEast: Assets

Pat Glass: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has for the properties owned by One NorthEast after its closure.

Mark Prisk: As set out in the White Paper on local growth, RDA assets and liabilities will be disposed of in line with a clear set of principles which include a key aim of achieving the best possible outcome for the region consistent with achieving value to the public purse.

Royal Mail

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of small and medium-sized enterprises with contracts to supply goods and services to Royal Mail; what the average monetary value of such contracts is in a 12 month period; and how much notice such suppliers will receive of implementation of the outcomes of the review of supplier payment terms.

Edward Davey: Royal Mail's supplier contracts are an operational matter for the company.
	I have therefore asked the chief executive of Royal Mail, Moya Greene, to respond directly to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the House Libraries.

Science: Finance

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the change in the science budget was in  (a) cash and  (b) real terms between 2002 and 2008.

John Hayes: The Science and Research Budget increased from £2.1 billion in 2002-03 to £3.7 billion in 2008-09.
	(a) This is a change of £1.6 billion in cash terms.
	(b) This is a change of £1.2 billion in real terms.

Space Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department plans to take to increase the number of business start-ups in the space sector.

John Hayes: This Department through the Science and Technology Facilities Council, Technology Strategy Board and the UK Space Agency will be opening a business incubation centre at Harwell on the 2 December 2010 jointly with the European Space Agency. This aims to create 10 new businesses a year across the UK.

Space Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding he expects his Department to provide to businesses in the space sector in each year of the Spending Review period.

John Hayes: The budget for the space sector in each year of the spending review is still under finalisation within the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The final decision will be taken in the light of the overall departmental budget allocations and should be agreed before the end of the year.

Space Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will identify those regions most likely to host the predicted growth in the space industry.

John Hayes: The recent survey of the size and health of the UK Space Industry suggests that the majority of companies are based in the South East of England, and so in the immediate future growth is therefore most likely to occur in this area. Companies are also beginning to grow in other parts of the country and I would anticipate that in the longer term growth will take place in other regions, even if from a small baseline.

Space Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on the establishment of a national Earth observation service to acquire images on behalf of Government Departments.

John Hayes: In 2010 an Industry led Innovation Growth Strategy report recommended that the UK establish a national Earth observation data service. In response this Department, through the UK Space Agency, is supporting a review of the Government's need for data, including imagery data, from space. This will estimate the size and nature of the public sector demand for Earth observation services now and into the future. The review will determine whether cost efficiencies and wealth creation can be derived from a strategic government procurement exercise creating a national Earth observation service. On the basis of this work, the final Government position will be taken during 2011 or 2012.

Space Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding his Department provides to private companies working in the space sector for testing technology in orbit.

John Hayes: The exact level of funding is determined by the quality of relevant proposals in the all areas of space technology. At present we have one project for a small satellite and a nano satellite to test technology in orbit, and the estimated cost to HMG is approximately £4 million. In addition individual payloads will be provided through a competition.

Space Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what alterations his Department has made to the public subsidies available to private businesses involved in the space sector since 11 May 2010.

John Hayes: The Department offers no direct public subsidies to companies in the space industry. In term of space expenditure this Department has initiated no alterations to the plans in place on 11 May 2010.

Space Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of research and development spending in the space sector in each year of the Spending Review period.

John Hayes: The budget for the space sector in each year of the spending review is still under finalisation within the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The final decision will be taken in the light of the overall departmental budget allocations and should be agreed before the end of the year.

Space Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding his Department plans to provide to support the satellite manufacturing industry in 2010-11.

John Hayes: This Department estimates that approximately £230m will be paid in contributions to the European Space Agency in 2010/11. This accounts for the majority of the UK's space spend and we do not keep specific breakdowns on how much goes directly to satellite manufacturing. Within the industry, satellite manufacturing accounts for about 50-60% of total turnover.

Students: Fees and Charges

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will assess the merits of providing a facility for forgivable loans for medical students after the rise in the cap on tuition fees.

John Hayes: Currently full-time undergraduate medical students in England can apply for the same student support from Student Finance England as other full-time undergraduates for the first four years of their course. From year five onwards the Department of Health pay the tuition fee in full and provide a means-tested bursary in addition to a reduced level maintenance loan and supplementary grants from Student Finance England. Shared arrangements are also in place for students studying Medicine as a second undergraduate degree and for those on graduate entry courses.
	The Government have announced its broad plans for funding higher education in an oral statement on Wednesday 3 November. We will discuss the impact on medical students with the Department of Health, who share responsibility for providing student support for medical students.

Students: Finance

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the likely effect of his proposed changes to student funding arrangements on the ability of graduates to take on further loans incur on leaving university.

John Hayes: Income contingent student loan borrowers are not required to pay back their loan until the April after they finish their course. Repayments are based on 9% of income above the threshold and linked directly to a borrower's income and not the size of their loan.
	The Council for Mortgage Lenders advise that a student loan is very unlikely to materially impact on an individual's ability to get a mortgage. However, any reduction in net income may result in a commensurate reduction in the amount a mortgage lender is willing to lend. Our proposal to increase the repayment threshold from £15,000 to £21,000 will increase the amount of net income available to borrowers because monthly repayments will fall as a result.
	A student's ability to obtain a loan, such as a small business loan will depend on the bank or institution approached, and their terms and conditions.

Supermarkets: Ombudsman

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to implement the proposal in the coalition agreement to establish a grocery market ombudsman.

Edward Davey: The coalition agreement commits the Government to introduce the Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA). A consultation on the GCA took place between 5 February and 30 April 2010. The Government response of 3 August set out how we would take this body forward
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/business-law/docs/competition-matters/10-1011-groceries-supply-code-practice-government-response.pdf
	We now have approval to publish a draft Bill in the first Session of this Parliament. This will be undertaken as soon as parliamentary time allows.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Solicitor-General what his most recent assessment is of the effectiveness of the HM Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office in carrying out its functions.

Edward Garnier: holding answer 15 November 2010
	The Revenue and Customs Prosecution Office (RCPO) merged with the Crown Prosecution Service on 1 January 2010. Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate's (HMCPSI) report of July 2009 reported favourably on RCPO performance. The report concluded that RCPO has succeeded in restoring public and judicial confidence in customs prosecutions.

EDUCATION

Children In Care

Paul Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the average time spent in care by looked-after children was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Tim Loughton: holding answer 10 November 2010
	The average of any set of data is usually taken to be the mean. However in this case the mean length of time spent in care is heavily influenced by children who have spent a long period of their lives in care, around 4,600 looked after children have spent more than 10 years in care. Therefore we have also provided information on the median (defined as the middle value of data sorted from lowest to highest) length of time spent in care.
	Both the mean and median time spent in care for children who were looked after at 31 March 2010 are shown in the following table. These figures relate to the child's latest period of care and relate to the latest period for which information is available.
	
		
			  Children looked after at 31 March by the average length of time in care, year ending 31 March 2010. Coverage: England 
			  Number 
			   Years  Months 
			 Mean duration of time in care 3 5 
			 Median duration of time in care 2 0 
			  Source:  SSDA 903

Departmental Chief Scientific Advisers

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Education on how many occasions each Minister in his Department has met his Department's chief scientific officer since 6 May 2010.

Tim Loughton: The Department for Education's chief scientific adviser has met the Secretary of State on two occasions since 6 May 2010. During the same period the Minister of State, Department for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton (Mr Gibb) has met her on one occasion; both the Minister of State, Department for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Brent Central (Sarah Teather) and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State have met her twice; and I have met her on one occasion.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Phillip Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what mechanisms are in place to ensure that his Department's decisions on regional funding allocations are based on the most recent available population data.

Nick Gibb: Most funding from the Department is given to either local authorities or schools. Most education funding is allocated using the number of pupils in school in the January prior to the start of the financial year. The formulae used to distribute resources for children, families and young people's services takes account of latest available population estimates produced by the Office for National Statistics.

Education Maintenance Allowance

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many young people in each local authority ward in Leicester South constituency receive education maintenance allowance.

Nick Gibb: This is a matter for the Young People's Learning Agency (YPLA) who operate the education maintenance allowance for the Department for Education. Peter Lauener the YPLA's chief executive, will write to the hon. Member for Leicester South with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Education Maintenance Allowance: Rotherham

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many students resident in Rotherham will no longer receive education maintenance allowance once it ends.

Nick Gibb: This is a matter for the Young People's Learning Agency (YPLA) who operate the education maintenance allowance for the Department for Education. Peter Lauener the YPLA's chief executive, will write to the right hon. Member with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Education: Assessments

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated research on the effects of rewarding pupils for effort rather than talent.

Tim Loughton: The Department has analysed research evidence on the effects of the use of rewards and incentives on pupils' performance. The Department has not commissioned any external research on the topic.

Free School Meals

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children in each London borough were eligible for free school meals on the latest date for which figures are available.

Nick Gibb: The latest information on free school meal eligibility can be found in tables 11a, 11b and 11c of the Statistical First Release 'Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics: January 2010' which can be found at:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000925/index.shtml

Free Schools

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to publish the names of the promoters of each bid to establish a free school.

Nick Gibb: The names of the first 16 Free School proposals that have been approved to progress to the business case and plan stage can be found on the Department's website at:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/inthenews/inthenews/a0064280/written-ministerial-statement-relating-to-new-free-school-proposals
	As other proposals are approved to progress to the business case and plan stage their details will be published on the Department's website.

Free Schools: Freedom of Information

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to publish the names of donors to free schools; and whether such schools will be classified as public authorities for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Nick Gibb: Under the Academies Act 2010, the Academy Trusts of Free Schools and Academies will be deemed as exempt charities from January 2011. Where Academy Trusts receive individual donations, there is no requirement in charity law or in the Charity Commission's Statement of Recommended Practice for them to disclose the names of individual donors or the amount of individual donations.
	The Academies Act 2010 included a provision that extends the Freedom of Information Act to all Academy Trusts, including those of Free Schools. The FOI Act will apply to al Academy Trusts from January 2011, including the Academy Trusts of Free Schools.

Local Safeguarding Children Boards

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his policy is on the independence from local agencies of the chair of a local safeguarding children board.

Tim Loughton: The Government believe that the chair should be someone independent of the local agencies so that the local safeguarding children board can exercise its local challenge function effectively. It is expected that all local safeguarding children boards will work towards this over time.
	As part of her review of child protection, Professor Eileen Munro will consider the role of local safeguarding children boards and how they can become more effective in their leadership role in multi-agency learning about child protection. Professor Munro's final report is due in April 2011 and the Government look forward to receiving her recommendations.

Mental Health: Curriculum

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what support his Department provides for the inclusion of mental health education within the school curriculum; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will ensure that mental health education is provided within the school curriculum; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: Currently mental health education is included in the non-statutory programmes of study for Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education. This covers learning about the characteristics of emotional and mental health, and the causes, symptoms and treatments of some mental and emotional health disorders. Pupils should be taught how physical, mental and emotional health affects our ability to lead fulfilling lives. The programmes of study give teachers a framework for teaching, creating scope to tailor the subject to meet the needs of their students.
	The Department does not provide specific support to schools for the inclusion of mental health education within the curriculum. However, schools usually seek support from local partners and other organisations to help them to teach about mental health.
	We want all young people to benefit from high quality PSHE and are considering how best to ensure this while retaining discretion for schools to decide how to approach often sensitive issues.

Public Expenditure: Greater London

David Mowat: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his Department's capital expenditure per head was in  (a) London and  (b) the North West in each of the last five years.

Tim Loughton: Based on information compiled by the Department for the most recent Country and Regional Analysis exercise the expenditure per head for these two regions is as follows:
	
		
			   Outturn  Plans 
			  Region  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 London 125.67 123.80 133.65 168.35 207.00 
			 North West 95.61 95.14 101.98 122.12 150.49 
		
	
	The Country and Regional Analysis is a yearly exercise that departments participate in that allocates departmental spending to regions based on who benefits from that spending, not necessarily on where the spending takes place.
	The most recent exercise culminated in the publication of the Public expenditure Statistical Analyses Command Paper (PESA 2010, CM 7890).

Public Expenditure: Greater London

David Mowat: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much and what proportion of his Department's capital expenditure was allocated to  (a) London and  (b) the North West in each of the last five financial years.

Tim Loughton: Based on information compiled by the Department for the most recent Country and Regional Analysis exercise the expenditure per head for these two regions is as follows:
	
		
			   Outturn  Plans 
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			  Region  £ million  %  £ million  %  £ million  %  £ million  %  £ million  % 
			 London 7.456 14.77 7.512 14.80 7.557 14.79 7.621 14.80 7.686 14.81 
			 North West 6.840 13.55 6.853 13.50 6.864 13.43 6.911 13.42 6.944 13.38 
		
	
	The Country and Regional Analysis is a yearly exercise that Departments participate in that allocates departmental spending to regions based on who benefits from that spending, not necessarily on where the spending takes place.
	The most recent exercise culminated in the publication of the Public expenditure Statistical Analyses Command Paper (PESA 2010, CM 7890).

Schools: Admissions

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of children in each local education authority area without  (a) a primary and  (b) a secondary school place (i) on 31 March 2010 and (ii) at the beginning of the 2010-11 school year.

Nick Gibb: The provision of sufficient school places is the statutory responsibility of local authorities. Every child of statutory school age must be provided with a place.
	We are aware that in some areas there is exceptional growth in demand for pupil places, particularly for primary pupils. The Secretary of State has said that meeting the demand for additional places will be priority for investment over the spending review period.

Schools: Anti-Semitism

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what research his Department has  (a) undertaken and  (b) evaluated on the causes of anti-Semitism in schools in each of the last three years.

Tim Loughton: No research on the causes of anti-Semitism in schools has been undertaken nor evaluated by the Department in the last three years.

Schools: Standards

Dan Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which local authority areas are listed by Ofsted as having been in special measures for more than a year.

Tim Loughton: holding answer 8 November 2010
	Doncaster and Haringey local authorities were judged to be in the lowest rating category in Ofsted's annual assessment of children's services for 2008 and 2009, the latest years for which ratings have been published.

Schools: Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of  (a) the number of schools in Warrington North constituency which will be eligible for the pupil premium and  (b) the monetary value of that premium to be made to each school in 2011-12.

Nick Gibb: On 26 July 2010 we launched the Consultation on school funding 2011-12: Introducing a pupil premium. This set out the proposed methodology for allocating such a premium, including options on the best deprivation indicator. The consultation ended on 18 October 2010 and we are now considering over 700 responses that we have received.
	A statement of the outcome will be made shortly.

Special Educational Needs

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to reduce the attainment gap between pupils  (a) with and  (b) without special educational needs.

Sarah Teather: holding answer 9 November 2010
	The attainment gap between those with special education needs and their peers is too wide. We want to close this gap and ensure that young people with special educational fulfil their potential. The Educational White Paper and the SEN Green Paper will set out proposals to improve outcomes for these young people.

Safety Education: Fireworks

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what teaching is provided to children on the  (a) safe use of and  (b) risks associated with fireworks.

Nick Gibb: Schools can choose to cover these issues as a part of safety education. As fireworks are used increasingly, not only for the traditional 'Firework Night' on 5 November, but also to celebrate festivals such as Diwali and the Chinese new year, their safe use is of great importance. However, we leave it to the professional judgement of teachers to choose whether and how to teach this aspect of risk management.
	The Community and Home section of the Directgov website:
	http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/index.htm
	is a good resource for teachers and parents, who can raise children's awareness of risks and how to manage them.

INDEPENDENT PARLIAMENTARY STANDARDS AUTHORITY COMMITTEE

Complaints

Helen Jones: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, pursuant to the answer of 26 October 2010,  Official Report, column 177W, whether a letter from an hon. Member needs to be headed with the word complaint to be classified as a complaint by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA); and what marking would be sufficient to satisfy the requirements of IPSA complaints procedure to clearly indicate that an e-mail or letter should be treated as a complaint.

Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew McDonald:
	As Interim Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking pursuant to the Answer of 26 October 2010, Official Report, column 177W, whether a letter from an hon. Member needs to be headed with the word complaint to be classified as a complaint by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA); and what marking would be sufficient to satisfy the requirements of IPSA complaints procedure to clearly indicate that an e-mail or letter should be treated as a complaint. 22881
	We request that Members head complaints as such so that they can be identified easily and the complaints investigation process can be instigated.
	As stated in the published complaints procedure, we ask that letters or emails be headed "formal complaint".

Members and Members' Staff: National Insurance Contributions

Bob Russell: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what measures the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has in place to ensure that the National Insurance contributions in respect of  (a) hon. Members and  (b) staff of hon. Members are paid on the correct dates so as to ensure that there is no break in each individual's record of contributions; and if he will make a statement.

Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew McDonald:
	As Interim Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what measures the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has in place to ensure that the National Insurance contributions in respect of (a) hon. Members and (b) staff of hon. Members are paid on the correct dates so as to ensure that there is no break in each individual's record of contributions; and if he will make a statement.
	Deductions for National Insurance contributions for MPs and their staff are deducted on a monthly basis through payroll. Month-end reconciliations happen to ensure deductions are correct and payment to the National Insurance Contributions Office (NICO) take place before the monthly cut-off date. From September, monthly reports have been run to ensure that all individuals have a table letter and that no individuals are on an X code (no contributions involved), unless they are self- employed.

Members: National Insurance Contributions

Bob Russell: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what steps the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has taken to inform the Department for Work and Pensions of each instance where the record of National Insurance payments of  (a) an hon. Member and  (b) a number of staff of an hon. Member has been broken as a result of a failure to contribute the appropriate payment on the due date; and if he will make a statement.

Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew McDonald:
	As Interim Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what steps the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has taken to inform the Department for Work and Pensions of each instance where the record of National Insurance payments of (a) an hon. Member and (b) a number of staff of an hon. Member has been broken as a result of a failure to contribute the appropriate payment on the due date; and if he will make a statement.
	IPSA has not informed the Department for Work and Pensions of any cases where National Insurance payments of MPs or their staff have been broken due to incorrect contributions. In the few cases where contributions were not made, for whatever reason, IPSA has subsequently brought these contributions up to date. There is no reason to notify the Department for Work and Pensions.

Members: National Insurance Contributions

Bob Russell: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, in respect of how many  (a) hon. Members and  (b) staff of hon. Members the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has not deducted monthly National Insurance payments on the correct date; and how many months by contributions were affected in each case.

Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew McDonald:
	As Interim Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking, in respect of how many (a) hon. Members and (b) staff of hon. Members the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has not deducted monthly National Insurance payments on the correct date; and how many monthly contributions were affected in each case.
	Due to an error in the data transferred from House of Commons to IPSA, four people were transferred with a "table letter X" which led to no contributions being collected from them. The error was rectified in September when all contributions were brought up to date to include contributions for the missing months of June, July and August.

Members: Security

Mark Pritchard: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what account the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority takes of the likely effects on the security of the  (a) family and  (b) staff of hon. Members when taking decisions on the release of the documentation to the public.

Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew McDonald:
	As Interim Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what account the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority takes of the likely effects on the security of the (a) family and (b) staff of hon. Members when taking decisions on the release of the documentation to the public.
	In framing our policy on what information IPSA should publish, we have been mindful of our duties under the Freedom of Information Act (2000) and the Data Protection Act (1998). We have carefully considered any security issues that may arise and have consulted the Information Commissioner's Office and the House authorities, including the House security adviser, on these matters.

Trade Unions

Helen Jones: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, how many members of staff of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority have trade union membership fees deducted from their salaries.

Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew McDonald:
	As Interim Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many members of staff at IPSA have trade union membership feeds deducted from their salaries.
	IPSA currently deducts trade union fees from the salaries of 15 employees.

Travel

Helen Jones: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what contracts the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) has with  (a) the Government Car Service and  (b) other transport providers; what the terms are of each such contract; what the annual cost to the public purse is of each such contract; and how many IPSA staff are entitled to use transport provided under each such contract.

Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew McDonald:
	As Interim Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what contracts the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) has with (a) the Government Car Service and (b) other transport providers; what the terms are of each such contract; what the annual cost to the public purse is of each such contract; and how many IPSA staff are entitled to use transport provided under each such contract.
	Aside from where IPSA provides assistance to Members of Parliament on a case by case basis, IPSA does not hold any contracts with the Government Car Service or other transport providers. No IPSA staff are entitled to use transport provided by the Government Car Service or other such providers.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

House of Commons: Housing

Lorely Burt: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the House of Commons Commission on how many nights the accommodation in  (a) 2 Parliament Street,  (b) 3 Parliament Street,  (c) 2a Canon Row,  (d) 2b Canon Row,  (e) 4 Canon Row,  (f) 102 Rochester Row and  (g) 22 John Islip Street was used in each of the last five years; and by whom.

Stuart Bell: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer to the hon. Member for Maldon (Mr Whittingdale), as corrected on 12 November 2010,  Official Report, column 3MC, which lists the post-holders using the accommodation in  (a) to  (f). This accommodation consists of six residences, privately occupied by post holders and their families, together with sleeping facilities provided for staff of the House who need to be available on the parliamentary estate over prolonged periods and at unpredictable times. The House does not record the number of nights on which each is used.
	Occupancy figures for  (g), 22 John Islip Street, which provides hostel-style sleeping accommodation for staff who undertake occasional late night duties or who have an approved business need to remain in London overnight are as follows:
	
		
			   Bed nights( 1) 
			 2005 1,341 
			 2006 1,527 
			 2007 (2)- 
			 2008 1,715 
			 2009 1,652 
			 2010 (3)1,212 
			 (1) Bed nights denotes the number of beds occupied during the year. (2) Data incomplete. Average occupancy similar to 2008 and 2009. (3) Bed nights to end October.

Meat: Slaughter

Greg Knight: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the House of Commons Commission whether any  (a) beef,  (b) lamb and  (c) chicken served in House of Commons catering outlets was slaughtered using halal methods in the last 12 months; and how customers are made aware of the slaughtering method of the meat served.

Stuart Bell: No beef or lamb purchased by the House of Commons is halal slaughtered unless specifically requested by an event organiser. However, it has recently come to the attention of the House of Commons Catering Service that it has unknowingly received supplies of poultry slaughtered using pre-stun halal methods, and consequently customers have not been made aware of this fact. Contracts for the supply of meat and poultry are currently in the process of being re-tendered and as part of that process it has become apparent that the practice of supplying halal meats and poultry is widespread in the catering supply chain. The House Service is in discussions with bidders about how this can best be managed in future.

HEALTH

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health on 2 November 2010,  Official Report, column 900, when the Government commissioned a systematic review of the evidence; who was appointed to conduct the review and what relevant specialist qualifications each such appointee holds; and if he will make it his policy to include persons in the review who have wide knowledge or experience in  (a) law,  (b) social work,  (c) philosophy,  (d) religion,  (e) medicine and  (f) science.

Anne Milton: The review of induced abortion and mental health was commissioned in January 2010 and is being led by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Information on membership of the review team is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Specialist qualifications 
			 Dr Roch Cantwell Consultant Perinatal Psychiatrist Royal College of Psychiatrists 
			 Dr Ian Jones Consultant Perinatal Psychiatrist, Royal College of Psychiatrist 
			 Dr Tahir Mahmood Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists 
			 Dr Judy Shakespeare General Practitioner 
			 Professor Tim Kendall Director of National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health, Consultant Psychiatrist and Medical Director, Sheffield Health and Social Care Trust 
		
	
	A group comprising systematic reviewers, an information scientist, a project manager and the Department's policy lead is supporting the review team. The review will be sent out for consultation, prior to publication, to a selected group of experts in the field, including the Royal Colleges of Nursing and Physicians, statutory organisations and expert published researchers.

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 1 November 2010,  Official Report, columns 626-27W, on abortion, whether his Department's guidance on parental involvement applies to other surgical procedures; and if he will make a statement .

Anne Milton: Legally, health professionals are able to provide health advice and treatment, including surgical procedures, to young people aged under-16 without parental knowledge or consent. However, they must first establish that without that advice or treatment the young person's physical or mental health, or both, would be likely to suffer and the young person understands the treatment and advice proposed and its implications.
	The Department issued guidance on the provision of contraceptive, sexual and reproductive health services for young people aged under-16 in July 2004. The guidance specifically covers treatment for abortion and emphasises that
	"health professionals should discuss the benefits of the young women involving her parents. In the rare cases where she cannot be persuaded to do so, every effort should be made to find another adult to provide support, for example another family member or specialist youth worker".

Autism

Louise Bagshawe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the merits of a National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence Quality Standard in respect of autism.

Paul Burstow: The case for developing a Quality Standard for autism will be considered as part of work to commission a comprehensive library of such Standards from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), in line with plans set out in the White Paper Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS.
	NICE is already developing clinical guidelines on autism: one for children and young people with autism, scheduled to be published in September 2011, and one for adults with autism, scheduled to be published in July 2012.

Autism: Health Services

Louise Bagshawe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether his Department's forthcoming statutory guidance on, Implementing Fulfilling and Rewarding Lives will require local authorities to record the unmet needs of individuals diagnosed with autism in order to assist planning for future service provision;
	(2)  if he will take steps to ensure that his Department's forthcoming statutory guidance on services for adults with autism, Implementing Fulfilling and Rewarding Lives, is accessible to individuals to be able to use to hold their local services to account;
	(3)  Health if he will take steps to ensure that his Department's forthcoming statutory guidance on services for adults with autism, Implementing Fulfilling and Rewarding Lives, increases the standard of training provided for staff in health and social care in autism.

Paul Burstow: The national consultation on the statutory guidance closed on 22 October. We are currently in the process of analysing the response, which will inform the further development of the statutory guidance. Ministers will then consider a revised draft and take final decisions on content. We would not wish nor would it be appropriate to anticipate this process.
	The Autism Act sets the publication date for the statutory guidance, which must be produced and published before 31 December 2010. We will consider carefully how the guidance can be made accessible to individuals and their families.

Congenital Myasthenic Syndrome

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he made of the number of babies born with Congenital Myasthenic Syndrome in each of the last three years.

Anne Milton: The information requested is as follows
	
		
			  Number of finished admission episodes for congenital and developmental myasthenia in newborns (2007-08 to 2009-10) , a ctivity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			   Number 
			 2009-10 0 
			 2008-09 0 
			 2007-08 1 
			  Notes: 1. A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. 2. HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  Source:  Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The NHS Information Centre for health and social care.

Departmental Lobbying

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how much his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent from the public purse on influencing public policy through  (a) employing external (i) public affairs companies, (ii) strategic consultancies and (iii) corporate communications firms,  (b) external marketing and  (c) other activities in each of the last 10 years;
	(2)  which of his Department's non-departmental public bodies have undertaken activities to influence public policy for which they engaged  (a) public affairs and  (b) public relations consultants in each year since 1997; and at what monetary cost in each such year.

Simon Burns: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	Those bodies which procured work from public affairs consultancies between 1999-2000 and 2008-09 were identified in the answer of 23 June 2009,  Official Report, column 853W, which showed summary expenditure.

Food: Labelling

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken in preparation for the EPSCO meeting on 6 and 7 December 2010 to ensure that the UK retains its right to additional voluntary schemes using front-of-pack food labelling; and if he will make a statement.

Anne Milton: The United Kingdom has been actively involved in all the Council discussions to progress proposals for additional voluntary schemes. I understand that the text to be presented to the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO) is expected to allow voluntary Front of Pack nutrition labelling, with information on energy, fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt with percentage Guideline Daily Amount, as well as additional forms of expression and presentation (format unspecified) on a voluntary basis. However discussions are ongoing.

General Practitioners

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what timetable he has set for the implementation of his proposals for GP commissioning.

Simon Burns: We are committed to a staged implementation of our proposals for new general practitioner (GP) commissioning arrangements. Subject to the outcomes of the analysis of the consultation responses the Department has received and to parliamentary approval of the necessary primary legislation, our indicative timetable sets out that GP consortiums will begin to form, where they wish to, and where they are ready to do so, in 2010-11, and that throughout 2011-12 a more comprehensive system of shadow consortiums will be in place, up and running and learning. We also propose that the NHS Commissioning Board will be established in shadow form in 2011-12.
	By April 2012, consortiums will be formally established with indicative allocations and responsibility to prepare commissioning plans. The NHS Commissioning Board will also be established as an independent statutory body.
	By 2013, we propose that we will have fully engaged and authorised GP consortiums with real budgets and holding contracts with providers.

General Practitioners

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether GPs will be responsible for commissioning  (a) hepatitis (i) B and (ii) C and  (b) other specialist services; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The White Paper 'Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS' set out our proposals to devolve power and responsibility for commissioning services to local consortiums of general practitioner (GP) practices.
	We propose that GP consortiums will be responsible for commissioning the great majority of national health service services, including for non-complicated cases of hepatitis B and C, depending on local service provision. We will expect consortiums to involve relevant health and social care professionals from all sectors in helping design care pathways or care packages that achieve more integrated delivery of care, higher quality, and more efficient use of NHS resources. This will create an effective dialogue across all health and, where appropriate, social care professionals.
	We propose that the NHS Commissioning Board will commission national specialised services and regional specialised services as set out in the Specialised Services National Definitions Set. This may include services for complicated cases of hepatitis B and C which are included in the definition of specialised services for Liver, Biliary and Pancreatic Medicine and Surgery (adult).
	'Liberating the NHS: Commissioning for Patients' invited views on a number of areas of the commissioning agenda, including asking consultees to consider whether there are any services currently commissioned as regional specialised services that could potentially be commissioned in the future by commissioning consortiums. The engagement exercise closed on 11 October and the Department is now analysing all of the contributions received.

Health Services

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has plans to produce a new edition of the Specialised Services National Definitions Set; whether the NHS Commissioning Board plans to use the third edition of the set as the basis for its role in commissioning National Specialised Services; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The Specialised Services National Definitions Set (SSNDS) has recently been updated through a long process of consultation which involved key clinicians and patient groups.
	The SSNDS will form the solid basis for considering which specialised services the Secretary of State will ask the NHS Commissioning Board to commission.

Hepatitis: Health Services

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to publish a funded hepatitis action plan in a similar format to that used in Scotland.

Anne Milton: Professor Martin Lombard, national clinical director for liver disease, is currently leading the Department's programme of work to support the national health service in responding to liver disease in England, of which viral hepatitis is a factor. The Department will then publish a public consultation on proposals.

Lambert Eaton Syndrome

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS  (a) in total and  (b) per patient of the substitution of Firdapse(r) for 3,4 diaminopyridine for the treatment of patients with Lambert Eaton syndrome in 2011-12.

Simon Burns: The estimated cost to the NHS (secondary care in England) of the substitution of Firdapse(r) for 3,4 diaminopyridine for patients with Lambert Eaton syndrome in 2011-12 is as follows:
	 (a) In total-£9,768,668 (excluding VAT); and
	 (b) Per patient-£44,000 (excluding VAT).

Malnutrition

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients with malnutrition were  (a) admitted to and  (b) discharged from each hospital in England in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Anne Milton: A table which provides a count of admissions and last (discharge) episodes in and out of hospital where there was a primary or secondary diagnosis of malnutrition broken down by hospital provider from 2007-08 to 2009-10 has been placed in the Library.
	Note that admissions and discharges do not represent the number of people, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.

Mental Health Services

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 2 November 2010,  Official Report, column 775W, on mental health services, when he expects to publish his  (a) mental health strategy and  (b) public health White Paper.

Paul Burstow: On 2 September I announced the beginning of work on reshaping the mental health strategy which will have the twin aims of promoting and sustaining good mental health and well-being in the wider population and improving the quality of existing services for people across the full range of mental health problems. We expect to publish the strategy in the new year.
	Improving public health is at the core of this Government's health policy and we will make clear our priorities in this area in the Public Health White Paper later this year.

Myasthenia Gravis

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  when he last met the Myasthenia Gravis Association; and what the agenda was of that meeting;
	(2)  whether he plans to take steps to raise the level of public awareness of the condition Myasthenia Gravis;
	(3)  what recent estimate he has made of the number of people who have Myasthenia Gravis who are  (a) under 18,  (b) between 18 and 30,  (c) between 31 and 40,  (d) between 41 and 50,  (e) between 51 and 60 and  (f) over 60 years;
	(4)  what recent estimate he has made of the number of people of each sex who have been diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis;
	(5)  how many specialist nurses there are for patients with Myasthenia Gravis in each NHS trust.

Paul Burstow: Detailed information on myasthenia gravis has been made available on the NHS Choices website at:
	http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/myasthenia-gravis/Pages/Introduction.aspx
	This information, suitable for those newly diagnosed and health professionals, covers the diagnosis, symptoms, and treatments for this rare condition. More detailed information, suitable for clinicians, is available on the NHS Evidence website at:
	http://www.evidence.nhs.uk/search.aspx?t=myasthenia+gravis
	It is estimated that around 6,000 people in the United Kingdom have myasthenia gravis. No age, or sex, breakdown for people with myasthenia gravis has been made.
	The number of specialist nurses for people with myasthenia gravis is not collected centrally.
	I have had no meeting with the Myasthenia Gravis Association.

NHS

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 1 November 2010,  Official Report, column 649W, on North West Strategic Health Authority: redundancy, when he expects to publish the impact assessment of the Government's consultations on changes to the NHS.

Simon Burns: The Government published an analytical strategy on 12 July 2010 outlining how we would develop the impact assessment for the reforms in the White Paper, "Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS", and its accompanying consultation documents. We intend to publish an impact assessment for all the proposals that require primary legislation in the forthcoming Health Bill.

NHS: Drugs

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on the supply of  (a) unlicensed and  (b) patented drugs which hold a marking authorisation.

Simon Burns: In the United Kingdom medicines for human use are regulated by the Medicines Act 1968 and supporting regulations which aim to protect patient health. Before a medicine can be marketed in the UK, a number of licences are required. The product itself must have a licence called a 'marketing authorisation' unless an exemption applies. In addition, the companies that are involved in all stages of the manufacture (including importation) and distribution of the product need to hold an appropriate licence.
	A marketing authorisation is granted following an assessment of the safety, quality and efficacy of a medicinal product. Marketing authorisations can be specific to an European Union member state, or apply across all EU member states. The regulatory requirements for marketing authorisations are defined at a European level. In the UK the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is responsible for the assessment of medicinal products for human use, and contributes towards the work of the European Medicines Agency in this area.
	In the UK the provision for the use of an unlicensed medicinal product is provided for by way of an exemption from the requirement for a marketing authorisation. In the interests of public health this exemption is narrowly drawn because these products, unlike products holding a marketing authorisation, will not have been assessed and approved against the criteria of safety, quality and efficacy.
	The use of an unlicensed medicinal product can only take place to fulfil the special clinical needs of the patient, where those needs cannot be met by an authorised medicinal product. The "special clinical needs" in such a situation must be of the patient, rather than due to considerations such as cost.
	In the UK it is for a doctor's clinical judgment as to which medicinal products they prescribe for their patient. A doctor should always consider using an authorised medicinal product first if available. Decisions such as the use of an unlicensed medicine need to be made in discussion with the patient concerned.

NHS: Finance

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the likely effects on discharges from the NHS of reductions in Government funding for local authorities.

Paul Burstow: The spending review recognises the importance of social care in protecting most vulnerable in society. In recognition of the pressures on the social care system in a challenging fiscal climate, the coalition Government have allocated an additional £2 billion by 2014-15 to support the delivery of social care. This means, with an ambitious programme of efficiency, that there is enough funding available both to protect people's access to services and deliver new approaches to improve quality and outcomes.
	We have achieved this by:
	The NHS transferring some funding from the health capital budget to health revenue, to be spent on measures that support social care, which also benefits health. This funding will be up to £1 billion in 2014-15;
	Additional grant funding, rising to £1 billion by 2014-15, will be made available for social care. This funding will be allocated in addition to the Department's existing social care grants, which will rise in line with inflation. Total grant funding from the Department for social care will reach £2.4 billion by 2014-15. In order to support local flexibility and to reduce administrative burdens, this funding will go to authorities through the Revenue Support Grant.

NHS: Standards

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms are in place to monitor  (a) waiting times in the NHS and  (b) the accountability of NHS bodies for timely access to consultation and treatment; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The Department collects and publishes monthly data on the time patients wait from referral to start of treatment. The latest national statistics data for the month of August 2010 are shown in the following tables.
	The NHS constitution includes the patient right
	"to access services within maximum waiting times, or for the National Health Service to take all reasonable steps to offer you a range of alternative providers if this is not possible".
	Commissioners have a legal duty to commission services that meet maximum waiting times standards and to offer redress to patients who wait longer if they request it. Commissioners are able to enforce the clauses related to waiting times with their providers through the NHS standard contracts.
	
		
			  Monthly referral to treatment (RTT) waiting times 
			  August 2010  commissioner-based data-RTT waiting times for admitted pathways completed during the month (on an adjusted basis) 
			  Treatment Function  Total number of completed pathways (all)  Total number of completed pathways (with a known clock start)  Average (median) waiting time (in weeks)  95th percentile waiting time (in weeks)  Percentage within 18 weeks 
			 General Surgery 40,355 40,306 7.6 19.6 93.6 
			 Urology 19,639 19,611 6.8 20.0 93.4 
			 Trauma and Orthopaedics 51,483 51,448 11.7 23.7 88.5 
			 Ear, nose and throat 17,333 17,323 10.4 20.6 92.3 
			 Ophthalmology 38,328 38,306 9.9 18.8 94.2 
			 Oral Surgery 17,544 17,544 11.8 22.8 89.8 
			 Neurosurgery 2,123 2,113 8.6 21.9 92.1 
			 Plastic Surgery 11,059 11,043 7.7 20.4 92.8 
			 Cardiothoracic Surgery 2,101 2,087 6.3 18.3 94.8 
			 General Medicine 5,256 5,253 3.5 14.2 99.1 
			 Gastroenterology 9,150 9,148 4.3 14.9 98.7 
			 Cardiology 8,520 8,462 6.1 17.5 96.2 
			 Dermatology 6,728 6,727 6.6 17.5 96.9 
			 Thoracic Medicine 1,236 1,235 3.5 14.7 99.4 
			 Neurology 840 827 4.0 16.8 97.7 
			 Rheumatology 1,740 1,740 3.0 14.7 99.4 
			 Geriatric Medicine 326 326 0.9 14.2 99.4 
			 Gynaecology 26,130 26,120 6.2 17.8 95.9 
			 Other 28,393 28,235 5.9 18.7 94.6 
			 Total 288,284 287,854 8.3 20.0 93.2 
		
	
	
		
			  August 2010 commissioner returns-RTT times for completed non-admitted pathways 
			  Treatment function  Total number of completed pathways (all)  Total number of completed pathways (with a known clock start)  Average (median) waiting time (in weeks)  95th percentile waiting time (in weeks)  Percentage within 18 weeks 
			 General Surgery 59,973 59,962 3.5 15.8 97.4 
			 Urology 26,275 26,256 5.2 16.5 97.0 
			 Trauma and Orthopaedics 89,765 89,740 5.1 16.4 97.0 
			 Ear, nose and throat 61,914 61,901 5.5 15.4 97.8 
			 Ophthalmology 88,603 88,501 5.5 15.1 97.8 
			 Oral Surgery 31,510 31,505 6.3 17.4 96.5 
			 Neurosurgery 3,440 3,430 7.4 17.5 95.8 
			 Plastic Surgery 9,052 9,047 4.2 15.7 97.6 
			 Cardiothoracic Surgery 973 973 4.4 16.1 98.0 
			 General Medicine 27,363 27,356 3.7 14.4 98.7 
			 Gastroenterology 20,022 20,005 5.7 16.6 97.1 
			 Cardiology 34,980 34,965 5.1 14.8 98.3 
			 Dermatology 62,075 62,034 5.9 14.1 98.7 
			 Thoracic Medicine 15,465 15,443 5.0 14.9 98.6 
			 Neurology 21,765 21,741 7.3 15.9 97.4 
			 Rheumatology 20,050 20,043 6.5 14.1 98.7 
			 Geriatric Medicine 11,075 11,074 3.4 13.4 99.3 
			 Gynaecology 56,540 56,471 3.8 14.1 98.3 
			 Other 236,579 236,346 1.8 12.8 98.7 
			 Total 877,419 876,793 4.4 15.0 98.0 
			  Note: Median and 95th percentile times are calculated from aggregate data, rather than patient level data, and therefore are only estimates of the position on average waits.

Physiology: Regulation

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the statutory regulation of clinical physiologists; and whether he has undertaken an impact assessment of such regulation.

Anne Milton: Ministers are currently considering, within the context of the Government's wider health strategy, whether to regulate healthcare scientists, including clinical physiologists, and how it might be done.
	A robust evidence-based cost-benefit risk analysis will be undertaken to inform the appropriate model of regulation for the healthcare science work force, including clinical physiologists.

Primary Care Trusts

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms he plans to establish to ensure that groups of GPs meet their financial commitments following the abolition of primary care trusts.

Simon Burns: Under our proposals for general practitioner (GP) commissioning, practice level commissioning budgets will be allocated directly to GP commissioning consortiums. Each consortium will have the responsibility to decide how best to use these resources to meet the health care needs of their patients. Consortiums will also have the duty to ensure that their expenditure does not exceed their allocated resources, for which they will be accountable to the NHS Commissioning Board.
	The detailed mechanisms that will be established to ensure GP commissioning consortiums meet their financial commitments will be developed as part of the financial framework for the proposed new system.

Primary Care Trusts

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his timescale is for the abolition of primary care trusts.

Paul Burstow: As set out in the Department's business plan, published on 8 November 2010, the Government have proposed that primary care trusts will be abolished in April 2013, subject to legislation being brought before Parliament.

Primary Health Care

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to take steps to ensure that GP consortia include pharmacists in their decision-making process in respect of the delivery of primary care.

Simon Burns: General practitioner (GP) consortia will commission the great majority of national health service services on behalf of patients. Consortia will not be responsible for commissioning primary medical services, which will be the responsibility of the NHS Commissioning Board, but consortia will become increasingly influential in driving up the quality of general practice.
	GP consortia will be able to involve specialist expertise in the commissioning of services as they see fit. Effective GP commissioning will require the full range of clinical and professional input alongside that of local people. Hospital doctors, nurses, pharmacists, allied health professionals and others all have a vital role to play and a real opportunity to develop services and improve the health outcomes of their local populations. Consortia will need to ensure that they have access to and draw upon the necessary expertise of those working in health and social care to ensure that they have the most appropriate specialist input into their commissioning decisions.

Radiation Exposure

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what  (a) national and  (b) local agreements there are in relation to the radiation dose uptake limitation system adopted by each ambulance service when attending a radiation emergency at each of the nuclear powered submarine operational berths maintained by the Ministry of Defence as required by Regulation 14 of the Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations 2001.

Anne Milton: The Department has recently published "The ambulance service guidance on dealing with radiological incidents and emergencies", a copy of which has been placed in the Library. This document provides guidance on the management of staff safety while enhancing patient care. This applies to all types of radiological incidents, including those sites covered by the Ministry of Defence Nuclear Accident Response Organisation.
	The ambulance guidance is supported by a newly created capability of ambulance officers within trusts, who have completed an ambulance radiation protection supervisor (RPS) course run by the Health Protection Agency (HPA). These officers are supported by a 24 hours a day, seven days a week ambulance radiation protection advisor service (RPA), provided by the HPA. To date, 78 officers have been trained, with a further four more courses planned for this financial year.

Social Services

Louise Bagshawe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by what mechanism the additional funding for adult social care announced in the comprehensive spending review will be allocated to local authorities.

Paul Burstow: The spending review recognises the importance of social care in protecting the most vulnerable in society. In recognition of the pressures on the social care system in a challenging local government settlement, the coalition Government have allocated an additional £2 billion by 2014-15 to support the delivery of social care. This means, with an ambitious programme of efficiency, that there is enough funding available both to protect people's access to services and deliver new approaches to improve quality and outcomes.
	We have achieved this in two ways:
	The NHS will transfer some funding from the health capital budget to health revenue, to be spent on measures that support social care, which also benefits health. This funding will rise to £1 billion in 2014-15, and will promote improved joint working between the health and social care systems. Later this year, the new operating framework will set out specific primary care trust (PCT) allocations that they will transfer to local authorities for spending on social care services to benefit health, and to improve overall health gain. PCTs and local authorities will need to work together to agree jointly appropriate areas for social care investment, with a shared analysis of need and a common agreement on the outcomes to be met.
	Additional grant funding, rising to £1 billion by 2014-15, will be made available for social care. This funding will be allocated in addition to the Department's existing social care grants, which will rise in line with inflation. Total grant funding from the Department for social care will reach £2.4 billion by 2014-15. In order to support local flexibility and to reduce administrative burdens, this funding will go to authorities through the revenue support grant.

Varicose Veins: Health Services

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many patients in each strategic health authority area were treated for varicose veins by  (a) vein stripping open surgery,  (b) endovenous laser treatment,  (c) radiofrequency ablation,  (d) foam sclerotherapy and  (e) using a vascular closure device in the NHS in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many patients in each strategic health authority area treated for varicose veins  (a) required an overnight stay using surgery or laser under anaesthetic,  (b) were day patients after surgery or laser under anaesthetic or (c) received (i) laser or radiofrequency under tumescent local anaesthesia and (ii) sclerotherapy without any anaesthesia and office-based correction without overnight admission in each of the last five years.

Simon Burns: The available information requested has been placed in the Library. Data are not available prior to 2006-07 for endovenous laser treatment, radiofrequency ablation, foam sclerotherapy, using a vascular closure device and combined varicose vein procedures as time series for these procedures only date back to 2006-07. Data may not be comparable with previous similar responses due to changes in clinical coding methodology.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

BBC

John McDonnell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent meetings he has had with the Director-General of the BBC; and whether the matter of pensions was discussed at those meetings.

Nicholas Clegg: The Deputy Prime Minister publishes details of his external meetings on a quarterly basis. Officials have meetings with a wide range of organisations and individuals on a range of subjects.

Rosyth Dockyard

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many  (a) politically-appointed advisers,  (b) civil servants and  (c) press officers accompanied him and the Secretary of State for Scotland on the visit to Rosyth Dockyard on Tuesday 19 October; how many cars were used in Scotland to take the party to Rosyth Dockyard; what the cost was of the (i) flights and (ii) use of cars for the visit; and from which departmental budgets these costs were met.

Nicholas Clegg: The Deputy Prime Minister was accompanied by one special adviser, and three civil servants (including one press officer). The Secretary of State for Scotland was accompanied by one special adviser and two civil servants (including one press officer).
	All travel was arranged in accordance with the Ministerial Code and civil service guidelines. The Ministers' costs were met by their respective Departments.
	The cost of the Deputy Prime Minister's domestic travel will be published as part of the Operating Cost Statement of the Cabinet Office Annual Report and Accounts at the end of the financial year.

Voting Rights: Prisoners

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the evidential basis is for his Department's estimate of potential losses arising from compensation claims relating to prisoner voting rights.

Mark Harper: As I indicated to the House on 2 November 2010,  Official Report, columns 771-79, a number of prisoners have brought legal cases against Her Majesty's Government in the domestic and Strasbourg courts. The estimate of the potential damages liability against Her Majesty's Government reflects the amounts claimed by prisoners and the size of the prison population who might seek to make claims. The Government are defending these cases.

TREASURY

Government Borrowing

Claire Perry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with the Governor of the Bank of England on the relationship between changes in market interest rates and levels of Government borrowing.

Mark Hoban: The Bank of England's November Inflation Report stated that:
	"Market contacts reported that the formation of a new UK government and the announcement of its plans for fiscal consolidation had reduced the perceived risks associated with holding UK gilts."

Comprehensive Spending Review

Hywel Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment has been made of the likely effects on HM Revenue and Customs' tax enquiry services for the public of the outcome of the comprehensive spending review.

David Gauke: HMRC is currently reviewing options for delivery of the tax inquiry services it provides through its network of inquiry centres, contact centres and online over the next spending review period. HMRC will focus on providing services that are both cost-effective and meet the needs of its customers.

Working Tax Credit

Alison McGovern: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of households with earnings between £12,000 and £30,000 per year whose working tax credit payments will be reduced as a result of the implementation of proposals in the comprehensive spending review.

Justine Greening: 775,000 and 810,000 households with incomes between £12,000 and £30,000 and receiving working tax credits will receive a reduced working tax credit payment in 2011-12 and 2012-13 respectively as a result of the comprehensive spending review.

Working Tax Credit

Ian Davidson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the average reduction in working tax credits for households on incomes between £12,000 and £30,000 per annum resulting from implementation of proposals contained in the comprehensive spending review in the Spending Review period.

Justine Greening: Households with incomes between £12,000 and £30,000 and receiving working tax credits will receive a reduced working tax credit payment of £210 and £290 in 2011-12 and 2012-13 respectively as a result of the comprehensive spending review.

Child Benefit

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of households which will be eligible for child benefit following implementation of the proposals contained in the comprehensive spending review.

David Gauke: It is estimated that around 6 million households will be eligible for child benefit following implementation of the proposals contained in the comprehensive spending review.

Child Benefit

Tom Harris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of households that will be eligible for child benefit once the proposals made in the spending review have been implemented.

Danny Alexander: It is estimated that around 6 million households will be eligible for child benefit following implementation of the proposals contained in the comprehensive spending review.

Redundancy and Retraining Costs

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer of redundancy and retraining requirements arising from implementation of proposals contained in the comprehensive spending review.

Danny Alexander: The total cost of work force reforms will depend on the decisions of significant numbers of public sector employers across the country. Detailed decisions regarding the number of redundancies and the associated costs that may be required have yet to be finalised in most cases, and it would not be appropriate for the Treasury to speculate on any aggregate numbers.

Staff Bonuses: Banks

Russell Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he plans to take to encourage banks to reduce the amounts they award in staff bonuses.

Mark Hoban: The Government have taken decisive action to tackle unacceptable bank bonuses. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is revising its remuneration code and new rules will be in place by 1 January 2011. In addition, the Government have introduced a levy that incentivises less risky banking activities and will continue to investigate the costs and benefits of a financial activities tax. In combination, these and other measures will ensure remuneration is consistent with effective risk management and high earning employees and other significant risk takers will not receive all their bonuses in cash while leaving their shareholders, and potentially the taxpayer, exposed to the long-term risks they take.

Crown Currency Exchange

Helen Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate HM Revenue and Customs has made of the liability for unpaid taxes arising from the entry into administration of the Crown Currency Exchange Ltd.

David Gauke: Section 18 of the Commissioners of Revenue and Customs Act 2005 does not permit HM Revenue and Customs to comment on the affairs of individual customers.

Crown Currency Exchange

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will investigate the activities of the Crown Currency Exchange; and if he will bring forward proposals to increase the effectiveness of regulation in the currency exchange sector.

Mark Hoban: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 8 November 2010,  Official Report, column 91W.

Crown Currency Exchange

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he received from the Financial Services Authority on the  (a) entry into administration and  (b) outstanding liabilities of Crown Currency Exchange.

Mark Hoban: The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is not responsible for the administration of Crown Currency Exchange or its outstanding liabilities.
	The administrators are reviewing the trading operations of Crown Currency Exchange, its financial position and the conduct of its directors. Once the administrators have reported, the Government will look closely at this case to see what lessons need to be learned from the failure of the company.

Government Departments: Waste

Conor Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department has taken to ensure that the commitments made by Government departments to reduce their expenditure through waste reduction are met.

Danny Alexander: The Government's reforms to devolve power away from Whitehall mean that central Government's administrative functions will become smaller and more strategic:
	The administrative budgets of central Whitehall and its arms length bodies (ALB) will be reduced by 34% over the Spending Review period, saving £5.9 billion a year by 2014-15 so that resources can be focused on frontline services.
	The number of ALBs across Government will be radically reduced. 118 will be merged and a further 192 will cease to be public bodies with their functions either being brought back into Government, devolved or abolished.
	Central government functions will be subject to a tough new efficiency regime, monitored and supported by the new Efficiency and Reform Group in the Cabinet Office. This will drive savings in operational overheads. Key measures include:
	Central mandation of commodity procurement, with centrally negotiated deals available to local government as well
	Stronger scrutiny processes for major projects to ensure they will deliver on time and to budget
	A more coordinated approach to supplier management to ensure Government act as a single client with key suppliers
	A new system of national property controls across the central civil and operational estate.
	The Efficiency and Reform Group have already made good progress; their contract renegotiations are expected to deliver £800 million of savings this year and 300 ICT projects have been reviewed with Cabinet Office working with departments to stop or de-scope projects worth £1 billion.

Higher Education

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research his Department has  (a) undertaken and  (b) evaluated on the relationship between university enrolment and economic productivity.

Danny Alexander: The Government recognise the key role that higher education plays in supporting economic growth and productivity, not only through the skills of graduates but also the research and innovation activities of higher education institutions. It keeps the available evidence under regular review.

CABINET OFFICE

Business: Procurement

Karen Lumley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment his Department has made of the effects of the implementation of the proposals of the comprehensive spending review on the capacity of  (a) small and medium-sized enterprises and  (b) large companies to participate in the procurement process for government contracts.

Nick Hurd: We want to make public procurement easier for suppliers of all sizes by taking bureaucracy and delays out of the process.
	On 1 November I announced a series of measures to make it easier for small firms and organisations to do business with Government. These included a 'Lean' study looking at causes of delay in the procurement process and action to speed up the process.
	We have also initiated work to centralise the procurement of common goods and services across Government, using our combined purchasing power to get the best value for money. This will provide a much simpler mechanism for suppliers to engage with Government.
	We want public services to be delivered in the most efficient and effective way by a range of providers including public, private and voluntary and community organisations. To this end we have been seeking industry views on innovative solutions to deliver better services.

Civil Service Live Conference

Robert Halfon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the  (a) quantity and  (b) cost of (i) alcohol and (ii) non-alcoholic beverages consumed at Civil Service Live in each year since it was established;
	(2)  what contracts his Department has let for each Civil Service Live event; and what process has been used to select successful bidders for each.

Nick Hurd: Civil Service Live events are owned and managed by Dods (the publisher of Civil Service World). The Cabinet Office does not hold information on the quantity and cost of beverages consumed at the events and neither has it employed contractors to manage CS Live events.
	For further information on CS Live events, I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 15 November 2010,  Official Report, column 635W.

Departmental Lobbying

Robert Halfon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent from the public purse on influencing public policy through  (a) employing external (i) public affairs companies, (ii) strategic consultancies and (iii) corporate communications firms,  (b) external marketing and  (c) other activities in each year since its inception.

Nick Hurd: Since their inception, the Cabinet Office's agencies and non-departmental public bodies, have not spent any money from the public purse on influencing public policy through  (a) employing external (i) public affairs companies, (ii) strategic consultancies and (iii) corporate communications firms,  (b) external marketing and  (c) other activities.

Departmental Lobbying

Robert Halfon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which of his Department's non-departmental public bodies have undertaken activities to influence public policy for which they engaged  (a) public affairs and  (b) public relations consultants in each year since 1997; and at what monetary cost in each such year.

Nick Hurd: Since 1997, the Cabinet Office's non-departmental public bodies have not undertaken any activities to influence public policy for which they engaged  (a) public affairs and  (b) public relations consultants.

Departmental Offices

Simon Kirby: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps his Department is taking to reduce the costs of Ministerial offices; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Hurd: The Department keeps under review the staffing of its ministerial offices to ensure the most efficient and cost effective operation. In addition, none of the Cabinet Office ministerial team have an allocated car and driver.

Government Departments: Procurement

Russell Brown: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what guidance his Department provides on the cost criteria for the tendering of government contracts.

Nick Hurd: UK Government procurement policy requires that contracts be awarded on the basis of the best value for money over the life of the contract. The Office of Government Commerce, now part of the Efficiency and Reform Group in the Cabinet Office, has published on its website a range of tools to support procurers in achieving this.
	As part of our drive to improve efficiency and reduce waste in the procurement process, we have commissioned a 'Lean' study looking at causes of cost and delay and action to address them.

Government Departments: Procurement

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many contracts have been identified as not delivering value for money since the announcement that his Department will collate monthly data on the use of consultants by central Government in May 2010; what the monetary value of such contracts is; what estimate he has made of the number of full-time consultant posts involved in such contracts; and how many such contracts have been cancelled.

Nick Hurd: The Cabinet Offices does not collect data across central Government on the value delivered by individual consultancy contracts, or any other types of contract. It is a matter for departments to assess whether their individual contracts deliver the value as identified in the associated business case.
	A number of specific consultancy contracts have been terminated, or scaled back, in direct response to the major programme review and ICT moratorium which is currently in place. This has resulted in expenditure with consultancy firms reducing by more than 50% on the same time last year across departments.
	The Cabinet Office has published tools to assist departments in developing consultancy business cases and conducting post assignment reviews in order to measure value. Details are to be found on the Office of Government Commerce website.

Government Departments: Procurement

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps the Office of Government Commerce plans to take to ensure that public authorities undertaking major tendering activities have taken into account its guidance on tendering; and whether it plans to take steps to ensure that there is independent verification that public bodies have complied with such guidance.

Nick Hurd: Since coming to office the Government have taken steps to improve the efficiency and quality of government procurement. We have taken a grip on major procurement projects; initiated work to centralise the procurement of common goods and services across government; and made a start on streamlining public procurement processes.
	We expect those conducting government procurement to comply with mandatory requirements, but we have no plans to monitor individual public procurement exercises; nor do we intend to establish independent verification that public bodies are complying with OGC tools and good practice.

Institute for Fiscal Studies

Robert Halfon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much his Department spent on services provided by the Institute for Fiscal Studies in each of the last 10 years.

Francis Maude: The Cabinet Office has made the following payments to the Institute for Fiscal Studies in the last 10 years
	
		
			   £ 
			 2000-01 818.75 
			 2001-02 105.75 
			 2002-03 350.25 
			 2003-04 172.25 
			 2004-05 250.00 
			 2005-06 0 
			 2006-07 0 
			 2007-08 0 
			 2008-09 2,415.01 
			 2009-10 6,377.30

Legal Services Commission: Procurement

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many complaints have been made to the Office of Government Commerce on the tendering activities of the Legal Services Commission in 2010; and under what  (a) procedures and  (b) timescale those complaints are dealt with.

Nick Hurd: The Office of Government Commerce, which is now part of the Efficiency and Reform Group in the Cabinet Office, has received one complaint against the Legal Services Commission in 2010. This is currently being handled by the Supplier Feedback Service.

Ministers: Conduct

Peter Bone: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office to which hon. Members the provisions of the Ministerial Code of Conduct apply.

Francis Maude: The provisions of the Ministerial Code applies to Government Ministers.

Parliamentary Private Secretaries

Peter Bone: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which hon. Members have been appointed as Parliamentary Private Secretaries.

Francis Maude: A list of Parliamentary Private Secretaries will be published shortly.